SMCC falls as Calvert clinches SBC River

TIFFIN — For much of its baseball game at Tiffin Calvert on Saturday, St. Mary Central Catholic was stride for stride with the top-ranked Senecas. That included big lefty Toby Gibson on the hill. Gibson went toe-to-toe with Calvert's Logan Ritzler, but a three-run fourth inning was the difference for the Senecas. Taking away a balk and a passed ball, the score would've been just 2-1. In actuality, the Senecas clinched their fourth straight Sandusky Bay Conference River Division title with a 4-1 win. "You can't expect to beat the No. 1 team in the state with only one run," Panthers coach Ryan Myers said. "We have to execute a little better, but Toby Gibson, Cayden Wikel have given us a chance to win against anybody we play when they take the mound. "We think we're right there with the best of them, but Matt Coleman does an excellent job with (Calvert) year after year, has them ready to play, especially this time of the year." Gibson went 5 2/3 innings, giving up four runs on six hits with nine strikeouts and four walks. He kept the high-powered Calvert lineup at bay for the first three innings. "I think we just started off a little slow after seeing (Edison's Bryson) Wittmer last night, who throws a lot faster, but (Gibson) was locating his pitches and good thing we got it going later in the game," Ritzler said. For the first three frames, there wasn't much action on the base paths as only five runners reached — Ritzler had seven strikeouts and Gibson tallied five. But the breakthrough for Calvert (20-1, 12-1 SBC River) was in the fourth. Connor Moyer began things with a walk and then after an out, Tucker Coleman laced a double to left center, getting runners on third and second. But after Gibson got a big strikeout, Calvert sophomore Branyan Coleman lined a RBI single up the middle and Ritzler followed suit to make it 2-0. The Senecas also scored on a balk to make it 3-0. After consecutive walks, the bases were loaded and the game was on the verge of getting out of hand. However, Gibson reared back and got Charlie Palm to fly out to left, leaving the bases juiced. "Tuck and Branyan have kind of been flying under the radar in the order, but they've been doing their thing," coach Coleman said. "Tuck hit a double and then Branyan drove him in. I like that because those guys were just sitting back and waiting for their opportunity. We're a team. We pick each other up. I feel like we did it there in the fourth inning and if we're going to make a run over these next few weeks, we have to keep doing just that." Through five innings, Ritzler was tossing a no-hitter with 11 punchouts. The Panthers (15-6, 12-3) finally applied some pressure as Blake Finneran lined a double down the right field line. After two outs, cleanup hitter Cullen Dillard smoked a RBI double over Tucker Coleman's head in right to get the Panthers on the scoreboard. Ritzler limited the damage as he acquired his 12th strikeout of the game to end the sixth. Ritzler was dominant once again, allowing just two hits and walking only one. "His numbers speak for themselves with only a few earned runs given up this season, but he's a gamer," said Coleman of the senior Ritzler. "You can see it on the basketball court. Anything he does he competes, and it's nice to have someone like that on the mound in a big game." For SMCC, the second season begins this week as it hosts Fremont St. Joe on Thursday in a tournament opener. "There's nothing to hang our heads about," Myers said. "I'm so proud of every one of our guys to even put ourselves in a position to compete for a conference championship. Next thing is the tournament and that's where our focus will be." SMCC 000 001 0 — 1 2 0 Calvert 000 301 x — 4 6 2 WP: Ritzler. LP: Gibson. 2B: (SMCC) Finneran, Dillard; (C) Ritzler, Coleman