Calvert ends St. Paul's season in district semifinal

CLYDE — The Senecas solved the puzzle. Twice, in fact. Way back on March 31, on a cold, dreary day in Norwalk, Tiffin Calvert topped St. Paul by an 8-2 score in the regular season. The Senecas jumped on the Flyers and starting pitcher Scotty Adelman early in the non-league win. In Wednesday's Division IV district semifinal at Clyde High School, it was a similar script. The Senecas (22-6) made Adelman work, and put the ball in play consistently in jumping out to a 6-0 lead after two innings. It was all they needed in a 12-5 win to end St. Paul's season at 18-8. Tiffin Calvert — ranked No. 15 in the final Division IV state coaches poll — will face No. 21 Fremont St. Joseph (20-10) in Friday's 5 p.m. district title game in a rematch of two regular season wins by the Senecas in SBC River Division play. SJCC topped state-ranked No. 5 and top-seeded Hopewell-Loudon (21-6) in the first game on Wednesday, 4-3. Adelman entered Wednesday's game with a 9-1 record and a 1.46 ERA. He had struck out 114 batters in 56 1/3 innings. But that lone loss had been to the Senecas, who touched him for four earned runs on five hits in 4 2/3 innings while throwing 100 pitches. "He's a solid pitcher obviously," Calvert coach Matt Coleman said of Adelman, an NCAA Div. II Tiffin University recruit. "The game plan was to make him work. In the last game we were able to do that and make him get in the zone. "He has two very good pitches and mixes the change in there occasionally, but our guys were prepared and up for the challenge." It was an ominous start for the No. 18-ranked Flyers, as the first batter of the game for Calvert reached on an infield error. Starting pitcher Nick Seifert then drove in a run, and he came around to score two batters later on an RBI single by Mason Johnson for a 2-0 lead. Two one-out walks issued by Adelman put him in a tough spot in the top of the second. Nick Palm then reached on an infield hit that was also misplayed that allowed the third run to score. The Senecas broke the game open on three consecutive singles by Seifert, Josh Gase and Johnson to take a commanding 6-0 lead. They added a run in the top of the fourth for a 7-0 lead, as Palm singled and came around to score on a passed ball. Calvert nearly won the game by the mercy rule, scoring five more times in the top of the sixth for a 12-1 lead. Caden Otterbacher started things with an RBI base hit that scored Gase, then Quinten Ronski hit a three-run double off Luke Blum, who had just entered the game in relief for Adelman. After allowing 13 earned runs during the regular season, the Senecas got to Adelman for eight earned runs (11 total) on 12 hits in 5 1/3 innings. He struck out seven and walked three on 123 pitches. All told, Adelman allowed 21 earned runs this season — with 12 of those coming to the Senecas. "That was the game plan and obviously putting the ball in play against a good pitcher like that is key," Coleman said. "Being able to bunt and using our team speed is part of our game, and we executed it really well." St. Paul didn't go quietly in the bottom of the sixth inning, however. Blum walked and Jaycob Stanley singled to get the frame going. Blum came around to score on an error on a throw by the catcher, then after Tyler Perkins and Kaden Maxwell walked, Adelman hit a three-run double to trim the deficit to 12-5. Neither team scored in the seventh inning. Seifert went the distance for Calvert. He allowed five runs on five hits with five strikeouts and three walks. "Tiffin Calvert is a good baseball team and obviously we knew that having played them early in the year," St. Paul coach Aaron Fries said. "We knew we'd have to come out and play our best. I don't think we played poorly, but I just thought there were a couple plays early, those special plays we had talked to our kids about. "When you reach a district like this with four teams ranked in the state, if we were going to continue advancing, we were going to have to make the routine plays obviously, but also some of those special plays that needed to be made. We had a few of those opportunities, and we just didn't make them, and that hurt us. Then they added critical base hits at those times to follow up those opportunities." Fries said there were a number of things that hurt his team, but the first-year coach also pulled no punches. "They were just the better baseball team, bottom line," Fries said of Calvert. "They got critical hits with guys in scoring positions from the get-go. They got a great pitching performance and were just a better team that we wish the best moving forward." Maxwell added a double, while Eli Fisher and Perkins each singled for the Flyers, who won a fourth straight Firelands Conference championship and sectional title this spring. "Today doesn't take anything away from the season we've had," Fries said. "And I have to thank our two seniors, Scotty and Adam (Baker). As I told them after the game, it was not just between the lines — but also what they did for us outside the lines. They really created a legacy for themselves here. "They helped a lot of our younger players this year, and really set a tone for them moving forward on what you need to do to be a championship player," he added. "And we're forever grateful for that. We'll never forget the leadership they showed this year." Calvert 240 150 0 — 12 13 4 St. Paul 000 140 0 — 5 5 3 WP: Seifert; LP: Adelman (9-2) 2B: (TC) Ronski; (SP) Maxwell, Adelman