MERRILL — The Mosinee High School baseball team had put the tying and winning runs aboard and was down to its final out against top-seeded Aquinas.
The Blugolds had played in two straight WIAA Division 3 state tournaments before bumping up to Division 2 this spring and finding itself in this situation with a third trip hanging in the balance.
It was, as Aquinas coach Mike Dee determined, Jonny Deets time.
“The momentum was moving in their direction,” Dee said of the Indians.
Deets, a sophomore, entered the game and induced a ground ball off the bat of leadoff hitter Eli Yirkovsky, who was thrown out at first base to complete the Blugolds’ 6-5 victory in the championship game of the Merrill Sectional.
“We had warmed him up earlier and felt like we were at a good point to bring in someone ne they hadn’t seen,” Dee said after swapping Deets for Landon Teachout, who had recorded the previous eight outs in relief of starter Isaac Schelfhout. “That shifted the advantage to us, and we had a lot of confidence in Jonny.”
The Blugolds (23-3), will play in their ninth state tournament since 2003 and first as a Division 2 program after the performance factor dictated that they move up one division. Aquinas won the Division 3 state title last year.
Qualified teams — Reedsburg, New Berlin Eisenhower and Seymour also won Division 2 sectional titles on Tuesday — will be seeded for Wednesday morning semifinals at Fox Cities Stadium in Grand Chute.
Semifinal winners play for the championship at 3 p.m. Thursday.
Aquinas won a pair of one-run games on Tuesday. It started with a 2-1 semifinal win over second-seeded Prescott (21-5) before concluding with the win over the third-seeded Indians (16-7), who had the bases loaded in the bottom of the sixth inning with one out and two runners on with one out in the seventh but failed to score in either situation.
“Literally every day, we talk about relaxing when you are under stress and when you are out of control, how you regain it,” Dee said. “The kids were magnificent with that in those game.
“We didn’t hit the ball particularly well, and all that work is something they used today, and I’m proud of them for that.”
Teachout was the pitcher who encountered trouble late twice against Mosinee, but he recorded key outs both times. He surrendered two runs on a pair of hits and two hit batters in the fifth as the Indians cut their three-run deficit to 6-5.
An error, a sacrifice bunt, intentional walk and a fielder’s choice loaded the bases in the sixth before a grounder got an out at home plate and a fly ball ended the threat.
Teachout also got a fly ball to left field for the second out after two runners reached safely in the seventh.
The Blugolds took the lead for good with a three-run top of the fourth, which included an RBI single to left field by Schelfhout and two-run single to left by Teachout.
Waylon Hargrove was 2 for 3 with a triple and a walk, and both Teachout and Schelfhout drove in two runs as Aquinas maximized its seven hits.
The Blugolds had just four hits in the victory over Prescott, and they benefitted from the timing of catcher Jacob Thornton walking to the plate with two runners on in the fifth. He responded by sending a 1-1 pitch to left field for a single that scored Deets and Ryan Johnson, who had walked and singled, respectively.
That was enough for Hargrove, who pitched the first 6 1/3 innings and allowed one earned run on three hits and three walks while striking out five.
“Prescott took away our running game, which is a major piece of what we do,” Dee said. “When they take that away, you have to do something else, and Jake had a great at-bat.
“It’s something when you get in that situation, and your highest quality at-bat guy steps up to the plate. We were lucky we got that, and he did a great job.”
