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By Dylan Hefflinger and PBR Staff
Ohio Editor in Chief/NW Scout

Top 12 Stories for The Year 2014

PBR Ohio started up on May 3rd, 2011 as seen here. From that day, Chris Valentine has had a goal to promote high school baseball in Ohio at the highest level possible. Chris has been able to do this thanks to the help of parents, coaches, and the talented players throughout the state of Ohio.

Chris has also built a staff that has the drive to make Ohio one of, if not the top viewed website for Prep Baseball Report as well as put on some of the best showcases in the nation to help promote the high school talent that resides in the Buckeye State.

Dylan Hefflinger, PBR Ohio Editor in Chief/NW Scout, along with JD Heilmann, PBR Ohio Director Scouting take a look back at the year in review and put together a list of the top stories for 2014.

To start off the countdown, we chose a piece that touches JD, the Midland Baseball Organization, and the city of Cincinnati at heart, as one of the most well respected men in all of baseball passed away this year.

To follow that up we looked at "The Recruiting Trail" which updates where all the prospects across the state have been visiting, who they are getting attention from, and who they have committed to.

After that we looked at the "Cam Varga Experience" as well as a story about Adam no longer being a "One-Man Wolfpack".

Then we took an in-depth look at a heartfelt story of losing a brother and a great young man. After that was a look at the 26 players from Ohio that were drafted and then a look at the new Scouting Director, JD Heilmann.

Now we start to look at the OHSAA state finals in Columbus.

To start off we looked at the 2014 dominance that was Bloom-Carroll.

Next is the Division III championship by Coldwater.

Each day we will reveal the next story on the list. A hint for the next story are the words "D-I First".

A rundown of the stories: Note: We will be conducting a Twitter contest to vote on the top 12 stories for 2014 once the 12 stories have been posted.

• A Tribute To Papa Joe Hayden
• The Ohio Recruiting Trail
• The Cam Varga Experience
• Adam No Longer A "One-Man Wolfpack"
• Montoya ATV Accident Brings Family Closer
• 26 Ohio Players Selected In 2014 MLB Draft
• JD Heilmann Takes Over As Scouting Director
• The Bloom-Carroll Bulldogs Are Dominant In 2014

Coldwater Wins 6th State Championship in school history

The 2014 Coldwater Cavaliers had a season to remember as Coldwater won its 6th State Championship in school history.

Coldwater was preseason ranked 12th in Division III as they showed a good mix of upper and lower classmen to contribute to their success.

However, the Cavs exceeded my expectations as they found an ace on the hill in Derek Thobe (uncommitted, 2015) and just found a way to win all season.

Coldwater finished the regular season at 23-5, ranked 6th as seen here.

To start off the tournament, the Cavaliers had a tough game against Paulding, as they came away with a 3-1 behind a Thobe two-hitter as seen here.

Coldwater cruised through districts as they outscored Parkway and MAC rival St. Henry 9-0. Regional action was they same for the Cavaliers as they outscored Fredericktown and Huron 15-4, which sent them to their 19th state final four in school history.

In Columbus, the Cavaliers had some thrilling contests.

Coldwater found a way to win their semifinal matchup against back-to-back state champ Wheelersburg as seen here. 

With the game heading to the 10th inning late on a Friday night, the Cavs won in thrilling fashion.

With two on and nobody out, Matt Kramer looked to advance the runners up, but popped the bunt up.

With one out, Wheelersburg junior starter Wade Martin picked off Adam Klosterman at second which was just the start.

Klosterman stayed in the run down for a while and after about 10 throws, Wheelersburg threw the ball away past second and past the right fielder who was sprinting in to get in the rundown.

The error allowed Klosterman to score all the way from second to give Coldwater a 3-2 victory and the celebration started (pictured below).

In the state final, the 6th ranked Cavs used a big first inning en route to a 4-2 victory over No. 1 CHCA despite being outhit 10-5, to read full story click here.

In the first inning, junior lead-off speedster Brody Hoying reached first via a throwing error. After a sacrifice bunt, sophomore three-hole DH Malave Bettinger walked. A strikeout followed giving the Cavs two outs with their starting pitcher Grant Muhlenkamp coming to the plate.

The senior had the biggest hit of his life as the left-handed hitter roped a two-run triple to score Hoying and Bettinger. Klosterman singled past short and third for the third run of the inning to give Coldwater a big 3-0 lead after just a half inning of play.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Cavaliers will once again be a team to look out for in 2015 as Coldwater returns numerous talented players and always seems to find a way to fill in for players they lose from the prior seasons.

Coldwater returns their ace Derek Thobe (2015, unsigned), top power hitter Malave Bettinger (2016), star QB for the Football State Champions Brody Hoying (2015), Greg Gilliland (2015, RHP) and Aaron Harlamert (SS/C, 2016) among others.