For the 11th straight year and 16
times out of the last 21, the Cougars have won the Midland Trail Conference Tournament championship.
This time the victim was Louisville North Clay as they knocked-off
the top seeded Cardinals 6-2 to claim the title.
The game's scoring started early as the Cougars scored two runs in their first
at-bat.
Cole Armstrong led off with a single and a stolen base and after a strikeout,
Tyler Gillett drove him home with a run-scoring single. After consecutive walks to Dylan Sill, Shane Donoho, and Ryan Gesell,
Gillett would cross the plate for run number two.
The Cougars struck again in the third when Sill walked and was sacrificed to
second with Ian King's bunt to the right side. After another strikeout, Gesell plated his second RBI of the game with a single
through the right side of the infield to make it 3-0.
The Cardinals got within one in the fourth when they put runners on second
and third with two outs and an inning-ending grounder to short was thrown wide of the bag at first for a throwing error.
But that's all they would get against starting and winning pitcher Derek Harmeier
who shutout the Cards the rest of the way.
His line for the game read 2 unearned runs on 2 hits, 4 walks, and 12 strikeouts and
the performance was probably the best he has turned in his varsity pitching career.
The Cougars added two more runs in the sixth and one more in the seventh to
extend their lead and give them a little breathing room going down the stretch.
Gillett drove home one of the runs with his second RBI single and the other
two scored on a North Clay throwing error and a wild pitch.
After finishing the regular season in third place behind undefeated champion
North Clay and the runnerup Cisne Lions, the Cougars capped off the season in grand fashion with the win.
Congratulations to all the players for their success this fall and a big thank
you goes out to all the parents and fans for their loyal support throughout.
