By Pete Cava
PBR Indiana Correspondent

INDIANAPOLIS – The rain that played havoc with Friday’s 3A state championship game held off Saturday, and the Rockville Rox, South Spencer Rebels and Penn Kingsmen took advantage of the break in the weather to claim victories in the 49^th annual Baseball State Finals at Victory Field. 

All three games took place under overcast skies with temperatures in the mid-seventies. 

A total of 8,317 fans turned out for the two days of competition, 5,413 for Saturday’s triple-header and 2,904 for Friday’s 3A championship game between Andrean and Jasper.  

Class A – Rockville 4, Shakamak 2

Saturday's first contest was Lakers-versus-Rox, Part Deux, as defending champion Shakamak (Jasonville) met Rockville for the second year in a row. This time around the Rox emerged victorious, 4-2, thanks to Dalton Laney's pitching and a timely hit by Tyler Rapp. 

Laney went the distance for the seventh-ranked Rox, finishing the season with a 10-0 record. The junior right-hander allowed five hits, walking three while striking out 12. 

“He had this moment last year,” said Rockville's Bob Kyle, a 14-year coaching veteran who started Laney in last year's championship game, “and it didn't work.  This year, he got it done for us.”

Kyle had been here before, while Todd Gambill of the No. 9 Lakers had not. Gambill took over this year for longtime Shakamak skipper Chip Sweet, who retired after guiding the Lakers past Rockville in last year's state championship game.

The Lakers (23-8) went up 1-0 in the top of the first. Dylan Collins opened the game with a free pass and Braxton Yeryar followed with a bunt sacrifice. Braxton was safe when the throw to first was off the mark, and Collins alertly took third on the play. One out later, Laney nicked cleanup hitter Mike Huddleston to fill the sacks. Parker Green, Shakamak's designated hitter, followed with an RBI single to left.

The Rox (28-6) answered with four runs in their half of the frame. After Shakamak starter Braxton Yeryar walked leadoff hitter Ben Cunningham, Kyle Paddock singled. Dalton Laney's grounder forced Cunningham at third, and Craig Overpeck followed with a ground ball to second that might have gone for a double play. But the throw to first was wild, loading the bases for Tyler Rapp.

The 5-10 backstop rocked an 0-1 pitch over the center fielder's head for a bases-clearing triple. “I just hit it and ran,” said Rapp. “It felt good, and it helped the team out. But I didn't think (the three runs) would be enough, because they were hitting the ball well.”

Rapp scored on Kaleb Huxford's sac fly to center.

In the top of the third, Shakamak had runners at the corners but couldn't push home a run. Braxton Yeryar led off with a double, and went to third two outs later on Parker Green's hit to left. Laney struck out the side to prevent any damage.

Braxton Yeryar worked out of a two-out jam in the bottom of the third.  Rockville had runners on second and third after an error, a wild pitch and a walk to Tyler Rapp.  Yeryar got Kaleb Huxford on a ground ball to third to end the inning.

The Lakers made it 4-2 in the top of the fifth when Laney hit Braxton Yeryar with a pitch and Mike Huddleston drilled a run-scoring double to left.

“Some of the balls they hit were blisters,” said Coach Kyle. “But I tell you what, you're not gonna take (Laney) out in that situation. That's what competitors live for.”

Laney reached back for something extra in the bottom of the sixth, when Shakamak had runners on second and third after a hit batsman, a walk and a wild pitch.  With two out and a full count, Laney blew a fastball past Braxton Yeryar to end the inning.

Rockville had another opportunity in the sixth, when Tyler Rapp led off with a walk and stole second one out later. An infield error put runners at the corners, and when Kegan Wimsett stole second, the Rox had ducks on the pond with a drawn-in Shakamak infield. Braxton Yeryar fanned the next batter and grabbed a comebacker to the mound to retire the side.

In the top of the seventh, Laney issued a one-out walk to Mike Huddleston, but retired the next two batters to give the Rox the Class A title.

Laney relied on his his fastball and slider throughout the one-hour, 57-minute contest. “They're good ballplayers,” he said of Shakamak's lineup. “They really made me work. There's no such thing as an easy out against these guys.”

Rapp, whose triple and two walks gave him a perfect day at the plate, said the thrill still hadn't sunk in, even after the medal and trophy presentations. “It'll hit us later,” said the soft-spoken junior. “I probably won't be able to sleep tonight.”

The L.V. Phillips Mental Attitude Award for Class A went to Luke Monroe, Rockville's senior left fielder.

Class A Notes:  Saturday marked the second appearance in the state finals for Rockville.

Shakamak had played for the Class A title six times (2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2012, 2014), winning in 2008 and again a year ago.

Shakamak will send two players to the college ranks next year:  pitcher Braxton Yeryar and shortstop Dylan Collins, who will play for Vincennes.  Junior first baseman Braden Scott has committed to Marshall.

Rockville shortstop Kyle Paddock is weighing offers from Lincoln Trail Community College and Indiana Southern.

Class 2A – South Spencer 8, Lafayette Central Catholic 2

The Rebels put four runs on the board in the fourth and four more in the sixth en route to their fourth state baseball crown. Senior left-hander Jon Stallings went all the way for No. 2 South Spencer (25-2), scattering seven hits while striking out six.

Saturday's second game featured two more Hoosier high school coaching legends, South Spencer's Brian Kuester, who came into the contest with a lifetime 357-179 slate over 19 seasons, and 20-year veteran Tim Bordenet of No. 1-ranked Lafayette Central Catholic (29-6), who entered the 2A title game with a record of 473-170 with one tie.

Lafayette Central Catholic went up 1-0 in the bottom of the third when Ben Tharp opened with a double, was safe at third on Ben Metzinger's bunt, and scored on a base hit by Anthony Berumen.

In the top of the fourth, South Spencer (Rockport) took a 4-1 advantage, batting around against Knights starter Dylan Kiracofe.

With one out, Tyler Schneider smoked an 0-2 curve over the wall in left field for his sixth homer of the year. Schneider admitted he didn't know if the ball would leave the yard. “I never look,” said the right-handed hitting third sacker. “I just go with it, and I saw the umpire signal 'home run.' It was fabulous, putting runs on (the scoreboard) for Jon.”

“I thought that definitely gave us a boost, no doubt about that” said Kuester. “When you're down 1-0 against a good pitcher and a good team, getting back in it was a big boost. I thought we could score runs. I didn't know we'd score that many.”

Schneider's blast knotted the score at 1-apiece, but the Rebels weren't done. South Spencer loaded the bases on Jon Stallings' single, a hit batsman, and a walk. Zeth Young followed with a single up the middle that scored a pair for a 3-1 South Spencer lead.

Caleb Helms walked to load the bags again, and another base on balls to Kobe Stephens forced in a run. Coach Bordenet switched Kiracofe to second and brought in senior righty Nate Wiercioch, who got the final out.

In the bottom of the fifth with two out, Lafayette Central Catholic had runners at second and third after singles by Ben Metzinger and Adam Lovell and a fielder's choice. Stallings got out of it when the next batter lined softly to Taylor Market in center field.

South Spencer put the game on ice with a four-run sixth inning. Trevor Lehr led off and reached first on an error. Zeth Young bunted and got aboard when Lehr beat the catcher's throw to second on a force attempt. Caleb Helms singled to load the bases and Kobe Stephens was hit by a pitch, bringing in a run. Taylor Market followed with a run-scoring single to left, and another run scored when the throw home sailed past LCC's catcher as well as the pitcher, who was backing up on the play.

That put runners at second and third, and LCC shortstop Jackson Anthrop came on in relief of Wiercioch. Tyler Schneider followed with a sacrifice fly that made it 8-1.

The Knights got a run back in the sixth when Anthrop was hit by a pitch, took second on a wild pitch, and flew home on Ben Tharp's single to right.

Stallings gave up a pair of singles in the seventh, but fanned the final batter to send the Rebels back to Rockport with the Class 2A trophy. “I was throwing a fastball, curveball, changeup,” said Stallings. “I decided to take it one inning at a time, and we came out on top.”

The game took two hours and seven minutes to complete. South Spencer's Taylor Market received the Class 2A Mental Attitude Award.

Notes: South Spencer won previous state titles in 2007, 2011and 2013, all in Class 2A.

Lafayette Central Catholic came in with seven state championships (2004, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012 and 2013), all at the Class A level. This was the Knights' second season in Class 2A.

Prior to Saturday, neither team had lost an IHSAA championship game. Both squads came to Victory Field riding 17-game win streaks.

Lafayette Central Catholic's Dylan Kiracofe will enroll this fall at Mission College in Santa Clara, Calif. South Spencer third baseman Tyler Schneider is headed to Brunswick Community College in North Carolina, while Jon Stallings says he's considering several offers.

Class 4A – Penn 3, Terre Haute North 2

The final game of the 2015 season saw first-year coach Fay Spetter of the Patriots going up against 28-year coaching veteran Greg Dikos of Penn, whose career numbers include 646 victories.

Spetter replaced Shawn Turner, who resigned after the Patriots lost last year’s 4A title game to the Noblesville Millers.

Dikos sent Skylar Szynski to the mound against THN’s Greg Hannum in a matchup of two junior right-handed pitchers.   

The result was a tight pitching duel in which the No. 15 Kingsmen (26-9) scored three unearned runs, aided by five Patriots errors. 

In the bottom of the first, unranked Terre Haute North (21-12) gift-wrapped a pair of runs for the Kingsmen.  THN’s Hannum opened the game with a strikeout, followed by a walk to Brooks Ullery.  Brandon Stesiak forced Ullery at second, but the attempted relay to first for a double play was wild, and Stesiak wound up at second base.  Nolan Metcalf followed with a grounder to third, but the throw was in the dirt for the second error of the inning.  Stesiak scored on the miscue, and a two-base hit by Nik Kavadas plated Metcalf for a 2-0 Penn lead.

“It was a fastball on the outer half (of the plate),” said Kavadas, the Kingsmen’s left-handed hitting center fielder.  “All week, I had struggled with the ball on the inner half.  So I was looking for a pitch on the outer half.  I’d worked on it all day in (batting practice), and I was lucky enough to see an outer half pitch.”   

Penn benefited in the top of the third from another defensive lapse by THN.  Stesiak got aboard on an infield error and reached second on a wild pitch.  Metcalf followed with a grounder to THN third baseman Nick Rush, who faked a throw to first to get Stesiak hung up between second and third.  In the rundown, Stesiak was tagged out with Metcalf taking second.  Metcalf went to third on a single by Kavadas and scored on Trevor Waite's fly ball to center.

Meanwhile, Szynski pitched hitless ball into the fourth inning for Penn, allowing a first-inning walk to leadoff hitter Nick Barrett and another free pass in the fourth to TJ Collett.

Terre Haute North broke the spell in the top of the fourth.  Nick Rush stroked a one-out single and went to third on Cody Maloon's double down the right field line. One out later, Brett Herndon's two-base hit cut Penn's lead to 3-2.

Szynski, whose repertoire consisted of a two-seam fastball, changeup and curve, said he wasn’t worried when Penn got to within a run.  “Not really,” he said.  “I knew my defense was behind me.” 

“Skylar had that one bad inning,” said Coach Dikos, “but then he was able to come back and put the screws to them.  We had a pitch count on him, and I think in the sixth inning he was still in the sixties.  Terre Haute came out swinging, and they helped us with a couple of less-than ten-pitch innings.” 

Hannum departed with two out in the fifth after a bunt single by Trevor Waite and a walk to Tim Lira.  Tristan Pate replaced Hannum, and walked Szynski to fill the bases.  When the next man flied to center, Patriots fans breathed a collective sigh of relief.

With two away in the sixth, Penn once again had three men on, courtesy of a single, THN’s fifth error, and a walk.  Pate whiffed the next batter to get out of it.

Taking a one-run lead into the top of the seventh, Szynski fanned Nick Rush on a ten-pitch at-bat.  The next batter, Cody Maloon, lined a shot to left field that Trevor Waite ran down near the foul line for the second out.  That brought up pinch-hitter Logan Fenimore, who ran the count to 3-and-1 before grounding out to conclude the two-hour, two-minute contest, as well as the 2015 Indiana high school baseball season.

“I’m emotionally spent right now,” Dikos said afterwards.  “As a coach, you hope you’ve prepared your players well enough, and that they get the job done. Sometimes you have players that do that, and sometimes you don’t.  This is definitely a group that went out and took the game.” 

Penn catcher Tim Lira received the 4A Mental Attitude Award.

Notes:  Penn had won state titles in 1994 (before the advent of class baseball), 1998 and 2001, all under Greg Dikos.  The Kingsmen finished the year with nine consecutive victories.

Terre Haute North, winner of the IHSAA crown in 1974, is a two-time state runnerup (1983, 2014).

Penn, loaded with underclassmen, sends two players to the college ranks for 2016 – second baseman Brooks Ullery (Northwood) and catcher Tim Lira (Missouri S&T).  Sklyar Szynski, who'll return to Penn for 2016, has announced plans to attend Indiana U.

Terre Haute North has first baseman Chase Jones heading to Prairie State in Chicago and third baseman Cody Maloon will play for IU-Southeastern.  Catcher TJ Collett, a junior who broke the state record for career bases on balls this season, has committed to Kentucky.

Pete Cava is the author of Indiana-Born Major League Baseball Players:  A Biographical Dictionary, 1871-2014, coming soon from McFarland Publishers.