Harp pitches Norwalk past Columbian

NORWALK — Everything is still lies ahead. Behind a strong, complete-game effort from senior Carter Harp, the Norwalk baseball team will play for a share of first place in the Sandusky Bay Conference Lake Division. The Truckers (12-5, 6-1) trail Perkins (10-3, 7-0) by one game prior to Wednesday's scheduled rematch with the Pirates. Norwalk took a 1-0 lead into the bottom of the sixth inning before the Pirates scored three runs in the frame for a 3-1 win on April 17. Harp struck out 11 and navigated four walks to allow two runs (one earned) on five hits in Monday's win. He threw 119 pitches (73 strikes). "I just pitched to contact," Harp said. "We scored a lot of runs, so it made me feel free, and all my pitches were working. I could throw anything because my defense had my back." Trailing 1-0, Wesley Shupe singled, and Kaedyn Warner followed with an RBI double to tie the game in the second. Canyon Craig then followed with an RBI double to score Warner for a 2-1 lead. In the third, Landon Ferkel hit a big two-run single with two outs after Brady Singer and Harp had reached on singles. That gave the Truckers a 4-1 lead, which was more than enough for Harp. "Carter has been going out there and competing for us," NHS head coach Jason Higgins said. "When he gets ahead and keeps them off balance, he's impressive. "He's usually not a big strikeout guy, but that was quite the effort out of him." After the Tornadoes scored on a passed ball in the fourth, the Truckers closed out the scoring with two more runs in the sixth. Nate King was hit by a pitch, and Grady Naseman ran for him. Noah Helton then singled, and a misplay of the ball allowed Naseman to score. Harp then hit a pop fly that also wasn't fielded cleanly, which allowed Helton to score for the 6-2 lead. "It's kind of been like that all season, where the top or bottom of our lineup lifts each other up," Higgins said. "It doesn't matter; someone picks them up, and they usually find a way to get it done." As for Wednesday, if the weather allows the game to be played, Higgins said the message is simple. "We don't have to worry about anyone else or what they do," he said. "We just have to win games in front of us." Columbian 010 100 0 — 2 5 2 Norwalk 022 002 x — 6 9 1 WP: Harp; LP: Woessner 2B: (N) Craig, Warner