Margaretta advances to district play with 3-0 win

CASTALIA — Margaretta originally was scheduled to play Port Clinton in a Division V baseball tournament opener last Saturday. Three days later, the Polar Bears finally got to take care of business. Left-handed pitcher Mason Kromer threw five shutout innings and earned his third win this season against the Redskins in a 3-0 decision at Lions Park. "I was trying to throw strikes and do what I normally do and let my defense work," Kromer said. "They put a lot of balls in play and my defense came up big." Lefty Zach Gray threw the final two innings and struck out four. Gray hadn't pitched in nearly two weeks, so the work warmed him up for a start in Thursday's district semifinal against Oak Harbor in Fremont. "Really good job by those two left-handed arms of ours," Margaretta coach Ray Neill said. "They were really good and defensively we were really good." The Polar Bears won their 20th game to tie the school record for most wins in a season. Neill's 2022 team also won 20. Margaretta had to work for the win. The Bears put two runners on base in each of the first three innings but couldn't score. "I've been in those games before when we're putting the ball in play but when we hit it hard we're hitting it right at somebody," Neill said. "You get guys on and you need a two-out base hit and you don't get it." In the fourth, the Bears scored two runs without the benefit of a hit. The Redskins (6-17) committed two of their three errors in the inning. A walk by PC starter Derek Abernathy, who pitched a strong game, and a couple sacrifices gave the Bears the lead. Memphis McKenzie scored the first run when Robbie LaCourse reached on an error. Carter Kelley scored on Gray's sacrifice fly. "(Abernathy has) pitched well all season long and a lot of times hasn't had the run support, but he kept us in the game," PC coach Mark Howerth said. "We had one bad inning with a couple errors. In tournament baseball, good teams are gonna get you. They capitalized on the errors." Margaretta added a run in the fifth. Hunter Grahl, who had two hits and reached base three times, led off with a double. Pinch-runner Gavin Berg scored on Kromer's line-drive single up the middle. "I just try to hit the ball hard," Kromer said. "It seemed like we couldn't get anything going until the fourth. It was nice to chip one in in the fifth. And as a pitcher, it's nice to get those runs. It makes you feel a little more comfortable." Kromer singled twice and didn't walk a batter in his five innings on the mound. Lucas Bodie had two of the Redskins' four hits and also walked. Howerth, whose program made positive strides this year, loses three seniors — Tre Armendariz, Wyatt Siefke and Abernathy, who will pitch next season for Terra State. "We've improved so much in the last three years and it was the seniors who kept us in the game all the way," Howerth said. The Bears will try for a little payback against Oak Harbor, which edged Margaretta 5-4 in late March. Margaretta nearly played PC on Saturday in Oak Harbor. With Lions Park soaked by rain, the tournament game was moved to Oak Harbor. Then it rained hard again. "We were on the bus to go," Neill said. "We got to the Frosty Frog and we got a phone call to turn around." The teams couldn't play Sunday or Monday because Lions Park was booked for a tournament and several PC players worked the Walleye Festival. That pushed the game to Tuesday, but Gray remained in line to pitch in the district semifinal. "He needed a bullpen either on the field or out in the bullpen today to be ready for Thursday," Neill said. "He threw 20-something pitches and Mason Kromer was really good. "With the rain, we called on Mason and he picked up his eighth win today. We have a lot of confidence in Mason and he went out and proved why we have confidence in him." Port Clinton 000 000 0 — 0 4 3 Margaretta 000 210 x — 3 8 0 WP: Kromer. LP: Abernathy. 2B: (PC) Baker; (M) Grahl AREA TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE BASEBALL Wednesday, May 27 Div. IV district semifinals at Willard Perkins vs. Clyde, 2 p.m. Bellevue vs. Shelby, 4:30 p.m. Div. VI district semifinal at Shelby Monroeville vs. Crestview, 4:30 p.m. Thursday, May 28 Div. V district semifinals at Fremont Edison vs. Huron, 2 p.m. Margaretta vs. Oak Harbor, 4:30 p.m. Div. VI district semifinals at Castalia St. Mary CC vs. St. Paul, 2 p.m. Calvert vs. Danbury, 5 p.m. SOFTBALL Wednesday, May 27 Div. VI regional semifinals at BGSU Margaretta vs. Minster, 2 p.m. Patrick Henry vs. Lincolnview, 5 p.m.