Boys Varsity Baseball Season Schedule 2012
Baseball 2012: J-L eyeing long tourney run |
| Day |
Date |
Time |
Opponent |
| Tue |
Apr 10 |
4:00PM |
|
| Thu |
Apr 12 |
4:00PM |
|
| Fri |
Apr 13 |
4:00PM |
|
| Tue |
Apr 17 |
4:00PM |
|
| Thu |
Apr 19 |
4:30PM |
|
| Mon |
Apr 23 |
4:30PM |
|
| Thu |
Apr 26 |
4:30PM |
|
| Mon |
Apr 30 |
4:30PM |
|
| Fri |
May 4 |
4:30PM |
vs. Central Lake High School
|
| Sat |
May 5 |
TBA |
|
| Mon |
May 7 |
4:00PM |
|
| Thu |
May 10 |
4:30PM |
|
| Sat |
May 12 |
TBA |
@ Mio Tournament |
| Mon |
May 14 |
4:30PM |
|
| Thu |
May 17 |
4:30PM |
vs. St. Mary Cathedral Junior Senior High School |
| Mon |
May 21 |
4:30PM |
vs. East Jordan High School |
| Tue |
May 22 |
4:00PM |
vs. Atlanta High School (1 game only) |
| Thu |
May 24 |
4:30PM |
@ Harbor Springs HS |
|
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Cardinals keep it rolling against Boyne City
Gaylord Herald Times
JOHANNESBURG — The Johannesburg-Lewiston baseball team continues to get good pitching from its deep staff.
In his first outing of the season, junior Cole Nagy tossed a no-hitter in the Cardinals’ 15-0 victory in the nightcap of a doubleheader against Boyne City. The Cardinals came back from three runs down to win the opener, 14-4. Nagy struck out five, while walking four and hitting two batters.
“He has the best curve ball on the team, and he had it working,” said J-L coach Rick Guild.
In the nightcap, Garrett Koronka’s RBI hit opened up a close game, and it was smooth sailing from there. Alex Payne and Blake Huff each had two hits and two RBIs, while Brian VanCoillie had two hits, an RBI and a sacrifice.
Gunnar Owens started the opening game and benefited from a pair of scoreless innings of relief from Jake Newell. J-L (23-4) was down 4-1 before breaking open the first game. There were plenty of hits to go around. VanCoillie was 3-for-3, while Brett Kortman, Coalton Huff, Blake Huff and Payne all added a pair of hits. Newell helped his own cause with an RBI hit.
Guild said he’s not getting overly anxious about Thursday’s home doubleheader against St. Mary.
“It’s just another game for us, but, yeah, it should be a good couple of games,” he said. “If our pitchers are rested and we’re throwing strikes, we should be fine.”
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No. 5-ranked J-L crosses another team off Ski Valley Conference list
Gaylord Herald Times
PELLSTON — The Johannesburg-Lewiston baseball team traveled to Pellston Thursday and crossed another Ski Valley team off its list with an 11-3 and 3-1 sweep.
Jake Newell earned the win in the first game, spreading out five hits and five strikeouts. Newell walked only three batters and only one of the runs was earned.
The sweep was important for the Cardinals, who remain in the thick of the league race. J-L is now 19-4 overall and 12-2 in the league.
J-L was ranked No. 5 in the state in Division 4 in the latest poll released by the Michigan High School Baseball Coaches Association. “Overall, they played well,” said J-L coach Rick Guild. “With the exception of a few mistakes at the beginning, we played good.”
The three runs would not be nearly enough to keep Pellston in the game as every Cardinal earned a hit. Alex Payne was 3-for-4 in the game with a three-run double and four RBIs. Brett Kortman hit safely in three out of his four at bats and knocked in three runs, and Cole Nagy was 2-for-2 with a walk.
Gunner Owens took the mound in the nightcap and was lights out. “It was a pitcher’s dual, and Gunner was dominant again,” Guild said. “Their one run was unearned, and after the second, they were never really able to mount much of a threat.”
Owens gave up two hits and two walks in the win and sent 10 batters back to the bench via strikeout. The Cardinal offense slowly added the run support.
Blake Huff hit an RBI single in the fourth. An inning later, Brian VanCoillie singled safely and made it home on a Coalton Huff single. Kortman singled in the sixth inning and provided the final nail in the Hornet’s coffin when he stole home.
The Cardinals are in tournament action in Mio today (Saturday) and look forward to their next home game on Thursday when they welcome rival St. Mary.
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Extra-inning win gives J-L split with league titan
Gaylord Herald Times
MANCELONA — Under gray skies, the J-L baseball squad split with four-time defending Ski Valley champion Mancelona, taking the first in a marathon nine innings, 5-4, before dropping the second, 3-1.
The Cardinals (17-4, 10-2 Ski Valley) showed they could be put under pressure and still play their game. “That was as good of a high school game as it gets,” said J-L coach Rick Guild. “Both teams played outstanding baseball and should be proud.”
Unable to generate offense in the top half of the sixth and up 2-1 in the first game, J-L entered the bottom half of the inning needing three outs for the victory.
“We had them with two outs and two strikes in the bottom of the sixth, and their kid hit it,” Guild said. “We threw him out, but it was called a foul ball. The next pitch our catcher lost it in foul territory, and the next pitch was a passed ball that scored the run.”
The seventh and eighth innings were defensive battles with neither team able to make any major threats. With the afternoon beginning to turn into evening, the top of the ninth proved to be a good one for the Cardinals. After a Brad Kussrow single and a Brett Kortman walk, Coalton Huff came up after having a strong day already on defense at shortstop.
After falling behind in the count, Huff laid down a bunt that dribbled back to Ironman pitcher Craig Conway. Although Huff was thrown out, the suicide squeeze worked and the Cardinals were able to start a scoring rally.
“Coalton had the suicide squeeze, and I had it called with two strikes,” Guild said. “If he would’ve tapped that foul, he would have been an out.”
Brian VanCoillie sent another two runs in with a single, giving the Cardinals a 5-2 lead. In the bottom half of the ninth, starting pitcher Gunner Owens was eclipsing the 100-pitch count and then some.
The Ironmen were able to string together some production, and Owens found himself at the mound with nobody out and the bases load. “Yes, I thought about pulling him,” Guild said. “It had nothing to do with how he was throwing, it was more how many pitches he was throwing.”
Two errors in the field helped lead to two runs and with one out and a runner in scoring position, Owens decided to take matters into his own hands and struck out the final two batters of the game.
The second game was nearly cut short because of nightfall with J-L unable to come up with the run support to help out pitcher Jake Newell.
“Jake Newell pitched an outstanding game,” Guild said. “He only gave up three hits and had seven strikeouts. We just couldn’t put the runs up.”
The split sets up the beginning of a wild second half of conference play with J-L, Mancelona and St. Mary, and potentially others, gunning for the league title.
J-L plays at Pellston Thursday.
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J-L raises $3,000 at Kapture Invitational
Gaylord Herald Times
JOHANNESBURG — It is a highlight of the season for the Johannesburg-Lewiston baseball program.
The Cardinals hosted the annual Val Kapture Memorial Invitational Saturday and through entrance fees and a special garage sale, the school raised nearly $3,000 for a scholarship fund in honor of Kapture, a popular former J-L baseball coach.
“I thank all of the people who helped make that day possible and the umpires who
donated their time,” said J-L coach Rick Guild.
On the field, a J-L team with an overworked pitching staff split a pair of games. J-L lost the opener to Atlanta, 8-6. The young duo of Coalton Huff and Sean Paris pitched against the Huskies, with Alex Payne and Brad Kussrow each contributing a pair of hits.
The Cardinals rebounded to top Harbor Light Christian 14-3 in the consolation game. Paris, who was called up from junior varsity, earned the victory.
J-L also played Friday, sweeping Central Lake 5-2 and 8-7 in a Ski Valley Conference doubleheader. Gunner Owens picked up the opening game victory, striking out seven Trojans along the way.
Brian VanCoillie was on base three times and added an RBI hit, while Owens had a pair of hits and an RBI. Other run-scoring hits came from Payne and Blake Huff.
Jake Newell, pitching in relief, earned the game two comeback win. The Cardinals were down 7-1 early, but thanks to timely hitting and Newell’s steady pitching, they were able to catch up. Owens pitched the final inning to nail down the save.
Payne was 3-for-3 with a pair of RBIs, while VanCoillie had two hits and two RBIs for the Cardinals. Coalton Huff added a pair of hits and an RBI.
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A bad inning dooms J-L to baseball split
By Matt Wenzel, Staff Writer ~ Gaylord Herald Times
JOHANNESBURG — Hoping to continue on a five-game winning streak, the J-L baseball team welcomed Onaway for the battle of Cardinals Monday.
On a gray day over Johannesburg, a split decision ensued with J-L taking game one, 13-6, while dropping the nightcap, 7-3. “We had one bad inning in the second game and that bad inning was our downfall,” said J-L coach Rick Guild. The nightcap may have ended on a sour note for the home team, but there was no shortage of musical bases in the first game. After trailing 5-1, the J-L offense began to heat up, posting six runs in the bottom of the second inning, all coming home with two outs.
In a game that was still much in doubt, it was the pitching of Gunnar Owens that helped to propel J-L to the victory. “Gunnar came in relief for Brian VanCoillie in the third, and he struck out five of the seven batters he faced and shut them down completely,” Guild said. Owens’ 2 1/3 innings were enough to earn himself another victory. Brett Kortman stepped in as closer for the final three outs, and the J-L bats did the rest.
Owens contributed two RBIs to the offensive cause, going 2-for-4. Nick Michael had a solid game, batting 1-for-2 with an RBI. As the gray day took the nightcap to near darkness, J-L found itself in a similar situation as in the first game but was unable to find the two-out RBIs. A six-run Onaway second inning spelled doom for J-L.
“Jake Newell pitched well with the exception of that inning. He had two walks and seven strikeouts,” Guild said. Five of the six runs would be of the unearned variety.
In the fourth, big man Blake Huff tried to spark another comeback by drilling a hanging curve over the fence in left field. “Blake played well in both of those games,” said Guild. The senior went 4-for-6 with four RBIs and a home run on the day. VanCoillie had a strong second game, hitting 2-for-4.
The loss may end J-L’s winning streak, but the Cardinals are still 13-2 overall and 7-1 in the Ski Valley Conference. The Cardinals return home Thursday against Central Lake.
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J-L remains unbeaten in Ski Valley Conference play
Gaylord Herald Times
JOHANNESBURG — The Johannesburg-Lewiston baseball team continues to impress in the Ski Valley Conference.
The Cardinals picked up another two wins Thursday, battling frigid temperatures to take 4-1 and 5-1 victories against Inland Lakes.
J-L is now 12-1 overall and 6-0 in the Ski Valley. Brian VanCoillie was the winning pitcher in the first game. He allowed just two hits and one walk, while striking out seven.
Blake Huff went 2-for-3 with an RBI to lead the offense, while Brett Kortman added an RBI single. Gunnar Owens and Coalton Huff both made offensive contributions.
Owens took his turn on the mound in game two, allowing three hits and two walks and striking out seven. Kortman was 3-for-3 with an RBI, while Alex Payne and Owens each went 2-for-3 with an RBI. VanCoillie added an RBI triple in the victory.
J-L looks to keep up its hot start Monday at home against Onaway.
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J-L baseball slides past Forest Area
Gaylord Herald Times
FIFE LAKE — On a gusty spring afternoon, the Cardinals' baseball squad swept Forest Area, 15-3 and 14-3.
The J-L offense was as breezy as the wind, racking up 17 hits in the first game alone while stifling the Warriors, who only managed three hits.
Brian VanCoillie did damage in both games, going a combined 5-for-7 with four RBIs.
Alex Payne was right with VanCoillie, going 5-for-8 with six RBIs, including four in the nightcap.
On the pitching side, Jake Newell got the win in game one. He gave up one earned run in five innings and struck out four.
In the second game, Gunnar Owens pitched four innings, giving up three hits, striking out five and walking one.
VanCoillie pitched in relief in both games and retired all six batters he faced.
The Cardinals moved to 10-1 overall and 4-0 in the Ski Valley Conference. J-L hosts conference foe Inland Lakes Thursday.
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J-L baseball sweeps improved Bellaire team
Gaylord Herald Times
JOHANNESBURG — The Johannesburg-Lewiston baseball team fought off a tough Bellaire squad to get a sweep in the opening doubleheader of the Ski Valley Conference season.
With solid pitching, the Cardinals edged the Eagles 2-1 in the opener and spread it around a little more with an 8-0 win in the nightcap.
“Bellaire has improved a lot,” said J-L coach Rick Guild. “They have a good little pitcher over there that we faced. He didn’t do anything fancy, he threw hard and has a quick release.”
J-L opened the scoring in the second inning of the first game when Brian VanCoillie walked and was driven home by a single from Gunnar Owens. The winning run was scored after Blake Huff doubled and eventually made it home on a passed ball.
Owens was the winning pitcher in the first game, giving up two hits and allowing the one unearned run. “We’ve seen our guys come through in a couple of close games this season against some really good teams,” Guild said. “One of the reasons for that is our senior leadership. Our seniors have stepped up and played well.
“Another reason is our defense. I thought Coalton Huff did an outstanding job out there.” In the nightcap, the Cardinals let the bats loose on the Eagles, scoring in every inning except the sixth. VanCoillie got the shutout on the mound and was a perfect 3-for-3 at the plate with two RBIs.
Alex Payne had a walk and an RBI. Brett Kortman, Blake Huff and Owens also had key hits. The Cardinals are now 8-1 on the year and will travel to another much improved SVC team in Forest Area on Monday.
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J-L baseball splits Mio doubleheader
Gaylord Herald Times
JOHANNESBURG — The Johannesburg-Lewiston baseball team split a double header at home against Mio Tuesday night, dropping the first game 12-8 and winning the night cap, 7-3.
In the afternoon game, the Cardinals came out to a 5-1 lead in the fourth inning when the tables flipped and publicly for the first time all season, head coach Rick Guild was unhappy with the defense of his team.
“We had a 5-1 lead in the fourth but then Mio ended up tied 5-5,” he said. “Jake Newell pitched well. Then Cole Nagy came in and it wasn’t Cole’s fault. We had way too many errors in the game.”
The Thunderbolt offense continued to roll, posting seven more in the top of the fifth to take the game 12-8.
J-L had solid offensive production from Gunnar Owens, who hit 2-3 with two RBIs along with Alex Payne who also hit 2-3 with two RBIs.
The defense got itself together for game two and rallied around starting pitcher Brett Kortman.
The senior pitched 4 1/3 innings and gave up four hits, three runs with only one of those earned. Seeing the plate well, Kortman struck out seven and did not walk a runner.
Owens entered the game in the top of the fifth as the reliever and was able to get the team out of a tight spot.
“In the fifth we were leading 6-3 but Mio had the bases loaded with one out,” said Guild. “Gunnar came in and struck out two to end the inning then retired them in order in the sixth to get the save.”
Kortman had a good game on the mound and at the plate, going 2-3 with two RBIs.
Brian VanCoillie had a solid doubleheader, reaching base on 7-8 appearances.
The Cardinals will host Bellaire on Thursday to open up Ski Valley Conference play with a record of 6-1.
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J-L baseball puts up the offense in Boyne Falls sweep
Gaylord Herald Times
BOYNE FALLS — The Johannesburg-Lewiston baseball team easily improved to 5-0 on the season with a 17-0 and 12-0 sweep of Boyne Falls Friday.
Junior Cole Nagy was the standout in the pitching and hitting departments of the opener. Nagy struck out six in the opener and added a pair of hits and RBIs. Sophomore Coalton Huff snagged his first career varsity win in the nightcap, striking out seven along the way. Senior Brian VanCoillie went 3-for-4 with a pair of RBIs in the second game. The Cardinals will begin Ski Valley Conference play at home Thursday against Bellaire.
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J-L opens the season with a trio of good wins
Gaylord Herald Times
HILLMAN - The Johannesburg-Lewiston baseball team has survived three
games this week against some excellent competition.
The Cardinals started the season with a 3-2 win against two-time defending
Regional champion Rogers City Tuesday and followed up with an 8-1 and 7-5
doubleheader sweep at Hillman Thursday.
"These kids are a senior based group and are playing really well," said coach
Rick Guild. The difficult start to the season continues Monday when the Cardinals
face defending Ski Valley Conference champion Mancelona in a powerful
early season doubleheader.
If the Cardinals continue to play like they have, they might have a good chance
against the Ironmen.
The Hillman doubleheader featured two distinctly different games with senior
Gunnar Owens completely shutting down the Tigers in the opener. Owens
allowed just one hit and an unearned run while striking out 10. "He's really worked
hard at his game," Guild said. "In my opinion, he is one of the best catchers in
Northern Michigan, and he's really worked hard at pitching, too. He's throwing
extremely well."
Coalton Huff got the offense started with an RBI hit in the first inning and the
Cardinals made it 5-0 in the second on an RBI double by Blake Huff and RBI
hits by Brad Kussrow and Cole Nagy.
In the fifth, Alex Payne and Nagy reached with hits and later scored. Brian
VanCoillie also walked in that inning and stole a pair of bases. J-L tacked one more
run on in the sixth on a single by Kussrow and an RBI hit by Nagy.
The Cardinals found themselves down 5-0 in the nightcap before a wild finish.
J-L scored two in the fifth on triple by VanCoillie, a single by Coalton Huff and
a double by Blake Huff. Then, in the top of the sixth, Dylan Helms and Garrett
Koronka singled, Coalton Huff and Kussrow reached on a sacrifice, and VanCoillie
cranked a three-run triple.
Nagy pitched a stellar fifth in relief to earn the win, while VanCoillie entered
the game in the sixth and shut down the Tigers for the save. Brett Kortman
started the game and pitched the first four innings.
VanCoillie started the season opener against Rogers City, but it was Jake Newell
who earned the win in relief. Again, J-L came back to win, scoring runs in the final inning.
The Cardinals scored one in the third when Payne doubled and eventually scored.
In the fifth inning, Payne doubled again to drive in Nagy, setting up the game
heading into the sixth. Owens opened the inning with a single before a bunt by VanCoillie and walk by Blake Huff. Kortman drove home the winning run
with a base hit. The second game against Rogers City was called because of snow.
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