No. 1 Elkhart Central moves on to Class 4A state championship game

By Steve Krah
The Elkhart Truth
PBR Indiana Correspondent

SOUTH BEND — In a one-loss baseball season, Elkhart Central has not found itself behind too often.
But that's where the Blue Blazers were Saturday, June 8, in the Class 4A South Bend Semi-state against Lafayette Jeff.

The Bronchos went up 1-0 in the top of the fifth, but Central (31-1) answered with two in the bottom of the frame and went on to win 2-1 before 1,695 at Coveleski Stadium for the program's first semi-state title and a crack at the school's first state baseball championship.

"This team is resilient and confident," said Blazers coach Steve Stutsman, who will send his squad against Indianapolis Cathedral (28-0) at approximately 7 p.m. Saturday, June 15, at Victory Field in Indianapolis. “I had all the confidence in the world in them.

“They didn't wait (after Jeff took the lead). That’s the sign of a championship team,” said Stutsman. “That changed the momentum on our side.”

Senior first baseman Riley Futterknecht’s two-out bloop single scored senior shortstop Cory Malcom with the go-ahead run in the bottom of the fifth inning and senior left-handed pitcher Tanner Tully (9-1) went the distance for the victory.

“I heard my guys from the dugout and I just couldn't let them down,” said Futterknecht. “I was getting a hit no matter what.”

The win was Central's sixth in postseason play in 2013, following Elkhart Sectional wins against Concord (3-0), Northridge (5-0) and Elkhart Memorial (3-1), and LaPorte Regional triumphs against South Bend Clay (5-4 in eight innings) and Lake Central (4-2).

The Blazers - wearing their camouflage blue jersey tops for the first time - had knotted the score against Lafayette Jeff at 1-1 when Tully lashed a one-out single, advanced to second on a wild pitch and sprinted home when Malcom turned around a fastball by Jeff senior right-hander Peter Ripke (7-3) for a double.
"He put it right in the zone," said Malcom.

Stutsman noticed that the Vincennes University-bound Ripke was using his off-speed stuff when he was ahead in the count.

“When he got to two strikes, he was throwing us change-ups,” said Stutsman. “We were hitting the ball hard, but right at people.”

The Bronchos (22-13) had scored the game’s first run when freshman center fielder Austin Albrecht, batting No. 1 in the lineup, drew a two-out walk, moved to third on an error on a ball hit by junior right fielder Bailey Perdue and scored on the front half of a double steal.

The team’s vocal leader, Malcom rallied his teammates after Central fell into the 1-0 hole.
“Everybody has the jitters a little bit when you’re down,” said Malcom, a University of Arkansas-Little Rock signee. “But we came in the dugout and had a little pep talk and we got back up and were confident again. We knew we had good hitters coming up and we knew we were going to do it.”

Central will be the third high school baseball team from Elkhart County in the State Finals. Elkhart Memorial, coached by Dick Siler, lost in the semifinals in 1992. Jimtown, coached by Mike Stout, was beaten in the Class 2A title game in 1999.

Tully, who is bound for Ohio State University, gave up four singles, struck out 11 and walked three. Of his 91 pitches, 60 were strikes.

Ripke whiffed six and gave up eight hits, including seven singles, and walked one.
Central got a scare in the top of the fifth when junior catcher Kyle Smith was hit by heat exhaustion and had to come out of the game for senior Devin Prater.

“I told Tanner I was dizzy as I was walking back (from the mound),” says Smith, who reported feeling fine after drinking some water.

Smith and right fielder Jesse Zepeda were the lone juniors in a Central lineup with seven other seniors. 
Once again, Smith came away impressed by Blazers ace Tully.

“Tanner was being Tanner,” said Smith. “He was throwing 90 mph with a disgusting breaking ball.”

Tully talked about getting stronger as the game progressed.

“I was bearing down and making every pitch like it was my last,” said Tully.
The southpaw considered his curveball to be his best pitch on the day he earned his fourth postseason victory.