An inning Walther Lutheran will never forget led to a third-place finish at the Class A tournament Saturday at Silver Cross Field in Joliet.
The Broncos used a 10-run first inning to earn the third-place trophy with a 12-1, five-inning victory over Beardstown. Walther Lutheran batted around without an out and used seven hits, three walks, one hit batsman and a wild pitch to record the runs.
Instead of suffering a letdown after a 5-3 semifinal loss to Pinckneyville, Walther Lutheran came out with a purpose.
“It was my last game … at Walther so I wanted to make the best out of it,” catcher Nate Haras said. “I think a lot of the seniors felt the same. When we got in the dugout, morale was up.”
Haras contributed to five runs in the first inning. He scored twice and tripled in three in his second at-bat of the first inning.
Walther also had an inning it would like to forget earlier Saturday. The Broncos’ only errors of the tournament came in Pinckneyville’s decisive sixth inning in a 5-3 semifinal loss. Three errors led to three unearned Panthers’ runs.
In the championship game, Columbia’s Aaron Floarke allowed one-run in six innings and hit an inside-the-park homer to lead the Eagles to a 3-1 victory over Pinckneyville.
The 2006 fourth-place finishers built a 3-0 lead through four innings for Floarke. Josh Mueller earned his second consecutive tournament save after winning the opening-game in relief. Floarke, catcher Ben Thoma and second baseman Sheldon Jones had two hits for Columbia. Dusty LePere added an RBI single for the Eagles (34-5).
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At Silver Cross Field, Joliet
Saturday’s results
Semifinals
Columbia 4, Beardstown 1
Pinckneyville 5, Walther Lutheran 3
Third place
Walther Lutheran 12, Beardstown 1 (5 inn.)
Championship
Columbia 3, Pinckneyville 1
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dsurico@tribune.com
