Margaretta comes up clutch in district semifinal win over Genoa

NORWALK — There always are turning points in tournament baseball. Margaretta's matchup with Genoa had several, and they all went the Polar Bears' way. The Bears held the Comets to one hit, benefited from five errors and made enough big plays to claim a 3-1 win in a Division III district semifinal at Norwalk High School. Genoa loaded the bases in the fifth and sixth innings and had two on with nobody out in the seventh with the top of the order up. All that traffic yielded a single run. Margaretta, now 20-6, will play SBC Bay Division rival Edison for a district title on Saturday. "We talk about this like a trip to the dentist's office and we came out with a cleaning and not getting teeth pulled," Margaretta coach Ray Neill said. "We were blessed to get out of it and keep adding to a special season." The bottom of the second inning provided a clue that it was going to be Margaretta's day. The Bears' Ben Palomo led off with a walk. He was running when big left-hander Seth Witt threw to first instead of home. Palomo was in trouble, but made it to second on a throwing error. With one out and Palomo on third, he was nearly picked off after a missed squeeze bunt attempt. Instead, the ball clipped the third baseman's glove and Palomo scored the game's first run. Ben Millis singled and also was on the move when Witt threw to first. Millis got into a rundown and ended up on second after a Genoa error, the Comets' third of the inning. Reese Keegan's single scored Millis to make it 2-0. "Those little mistakes in tournament baseball hurt," Genoa coach Gary Nissen said. "We can't expect our pitcher to go strikeout, strikeout, strikeout. We have to make the routine plays." Witt, whose fastball topped out at 87 mph on a radar gun, finished with seven strikeouts. Palomo was efficient early and threw five no-hit innings. He got out of jam in the fifth after he walked the bases loaded with two out. With Genoa leadoff hitter London Stuller at the plate, Palomo threw a wild pitch. Genoa's runner on third hesitated, then tried to score. Keegan, the catcher, scrambled for the ball and fired to Palomo for a huge out. "I definitely thought it was a run," Keegan said. "But I didn't hear 'going' right away so I figured I had a chance. And I did." Margaretta leadoff hitter Cole Biehl led off the bottom of the fifth with a single and stole second before scoring on an Austin Dillery single. It proved to be a huge insurance run. In the sixth, Stuller led off by smashing a shot to left-center field. It looked like a sure double, but Margaretta center fielder Jordan Luzader made a diving catch in front of left fielder Kellen Moore for the first out. "If he doesn't make that catch, who know what happens," Neill said. "I was just glad there wasn't a collision." Genoa's only base hit came off the bat of Robert Messenger, the next batter. He skied a high popup near home plate. Keegan tried to make a play in foul territory, but the ball dropped inches fair and Palomo caught it on the bounce. Single. Palomo's pitching day was done three batters later after a walk, his eighth strikeout and a hit batter. Reliever Sean Reardon's walk loaded the bases and Neill made his third mound visit of the inning and inserted Keegan. The junior catcher-turned-closer induced a groundout to Dillery at second base to preserve the Bears' two-run lead. There was more adventure in the top of the seventh. A walk and the Bears' only error quickly put two on with top of the order coming up. Keegan went to his curveball and got Stuller and Messenger looking on strike 3. Witt, the Comets' stout 3-hole batter, stepped in next. Keegan threw another curve and Witt bounced back to the pitcher for the game's last out. "I had no clue how it was going to go. I was just thinking, 'Do not mess this up,' " Keegan said about his clutch offspeed pitches. "It went better after the first one and I had some confidence. I went and got them." Afterward, the Bears had a late lunch and scouted their Saturday opponent. Keegan was all smiles after doing a television interview. "It was a big relief of stress," he said about his clutch performance. Genoa 000 001 0 -- 1 1 5Margaretta 020 010 1 -- 3 5 1 WP: Ben Palomo. LP: Seth Witt