CHARLESTON, W.Va. — Bridgeport’s quest for an unprecedented fifth straight Class AA baseball state championship continues on Friday morning with a semifinal state tournament rematch against James Monroe.
The Indians (28-10) won last year’s contest between the two teams in the same game, on the same stage, 4-0.
“They worry me,” said veteran Bridgeport coach Robert Shields of the Mavericks. “They have a lot of team speed, they have a lot of confidence and they have a lot of athletes that are playing baseball. They may not be just baseball players, but they’re athletes that play baseball. They don’t fear anyone, they’re playing with a lot of confidence and a lot of moxie.”
It’s a Bridgeport program, though, with a lot of moxie itself that’s certainly used to having a target on its back, no matter the sport.
“Everybody’s big game is Bridgeport,” Shields said. “If you want to let your guard down, then shame on you. But this is something our kids have to be prepared for all of the time. You want to let them sit back and be kids, but also realize that everyone is gunning for you.”
The Indians this year have just two in-state losses to Class AA programs, falling to Lewis County 14-8 back on May 3 and dropping a sectional contest to Elkins 13-6 on on May 15.
Still, Bridgeport went 4-1 overall against Elkins on the year and 3-1 against Lewis County, winning sectional and regional championships over the Tigers and Minutemen.
Sophomore Nick Stalnaker has led the Indians at the plate, posting a .460 average with 19 RBIs and 19 runs scored.
Bridgeport’s lineup, though, is full of more-than-capable bats with Brayden Lesher (.433, 21 RBIs, 26 runs scored), Evan Ogden (.404, 11 RBIs, 17 runs scored), Koby Kiefer (.390, 20 RBIs, 39 runs scored), Brice Haines (.394, 24 RBIs and 36 runs scored), Chapin Murphy (.363, 30 RBIs, 26 runs scored), Tyler Pitzer (.361, 10 RBIs, 24 runs scored), Ethan Perry (.323, 14 RBIs, 17 runs scored), Tanner Bifano (.354), Drew Harbert (.333, 19 RBIs and 12 runs scored), Vincenzo Cava (.315) and Nate Cole (.304, 22 RBIs, 24 runs scored).
That’s a total of 12 players with a batting average of .300 or more in at least 31 at-bats, giving Shields a plethora of depth to move the lineup around throughout the year.
“I use a long list of kids,” Shields said. “Defensively, I’ve had some wiggle room if one kid isn’t doing well, I can plug another kid in to make him have pressure (and competition). Because we play so many kids, there hasn’t been a chance for them to sit back and let their guard down, because they know they can get replaced at any minute.”
Lesher has been the ace of Bridgeport’s pitching staff this season, posting a perfect 5-0 record, giving up 19 hits and 13 runs over 44 innings, while striking out 48.
Tim Via is 6-1 on the year with 37 strikeouts in 43 and two-thirds innings, while Pitzer, Mark Lavezza, Cole and Murphy all have three wins apiece as well.
“You have to be able to make the routine plays and you can’t let the atmosphere, big surroundings impact you,” Shields said of state tournament games from Appalachian Power Park. “You can’t let one mistake compound into several different ones. I think our schedule helps us a lot in preparation as well. We have a very, very hard schedule for AA.”
James Monroe (17-8), meanwhile, has found a new confidence this season, sparked by that late-season run a year ago that saw the Mavericks emerge as a surprise state tournament semifinalist.
Ranked in the top 10 for most of this year, getting back to Charleston was more of an expectation for this year’s James Monroe team.
“I think last year’s experience (at the state tournament) helps a ton,” said James Monroe coach Nick Newberry. “I could really tell last year how nervous our kids were. The stage was huge – they had never played in anything like that.
“There’s no reason to be intimidated when we get there this year,” he continued. “We know what to expect, we know what we’re going into and we should be able to handle the stage — even though we still do have a lot of young guys.”
The Mavericks have two freshmen and three sophomores in their starting lineup, but a handful of veteran leaders have helped mold this year’s group.
Senior Grant Mohler is at the top of that list, entering the week with a team-leading .412 batting average, 24 RBIs and 39 runs scored.
“He’s our leader,” Newberry said. “He’s the heart and soul of our team. He’s just an all-around great baseball player.”
On the mound, Mohler (3-3, 5.80 ERA) has logged 35 innings, striking out 30 along the way. He threw in last year’s semifinal loss to Bridgeport.
“We’ll probably go with Grant (on Friday), because he’s been there, he’s pitched in that situation and he’s a big-game-guy,” Newberry said. “He gets better as the stage gets bigger. He pitched a heck of a game against Bridgeport last year. We didn’t really get many hits offensively, but he kept us in the game to hold them to four runs.”
Freshman Andrew Hazelwood (6-1, 2.88 ERA) and Mikey Belcher (4-0, 0.81 ERA) have also been key parts of the rotation this year for James Monroe.
Behind Mohler at the plate, Connor Moore (.397, 27 RBIs, 20 runs scored), Cody Moore (.379), another freshman, Hazelwood (.342), Nick Jewel (.319) and Monroe Mohler (.317) have all been above .300 on the season as well.
It’s a group that’s eager to prove itself again on the biggest stage.
“Bridgeport is good again,” said Newberry. “I’ve kind of followed them all year with the hopes that we would see them again. Our kids really wanted another chance at them, I think. Everyone wants to be the team to knock them off, eventually. It’s going to happen at some point.
“They’re a pretty solid team and they’re fundamentally really good,” he continued. “They have several kids from last year’s team back. We know they can play.”
Friday’s semifinal will be the first of the day, scheduled for a 10 a.m. start from Appalachian Power Park.
“I think we caught (our fans) by surprise last year and they didn’t really believe we were going to go to the state tournament until we did,” Newberry said. “But our sectional crowds were huge this year and the regional crowds were great. Our community has been 100 percent in with us and it’s been really fun to see.”
Friday, June 1: Session 1 (Class AA semifinals)
10 a.m. — No. 1 Bridgeport (28-10) vs. No. 4 James Monroe (17-8)
50 minutes after game one — No. 2 Wayne (25-5) vs. No. 3 Frankfort (23-6)
Saturday, June 2 (Championship Saturday)
10 a.m. — Class AAA state championship
45 minutes after awards presentation — Class AA state championship
45 minutes after awards presentation — Class A state championship