By RICHIE HALL
In a very short period of time, the Fishers baseball team has developed a solid identity that has started a winning tradition.
The Tigers don’t quit and they play loose. Fishers did those things three years ago when it won a state championship for the first time. It shouldn’t be a surprise that those same two character traits have been front and center as the Tigers have marched to a second state appearance.
In fact, Fishers coach Matt Cherry said his team is “definitely playing just as loose” as it did when it won the big trophy.
“Throughout the tournament they have worn basketball and professional baseball jerseys on the bus to our pre-game warm-ups,” said Cherry. The coach also said the Tigers’ pitchers played Fungo Putt-Putt during batting practice.
That loose attitude is showing up in the game, as Cherry said “the moments are never too big for them. Even when we’ve faced adversity, they have remained calm and focused and continued to fight.”
Fishers will play for its second state title Tuesday night at Victory Field in downtown Indianapolis, with the first pitch scheduled for 8 p.m. The Tigers will take on Jasper, a program that has a long-established winning tradition, one that goes back to the start of the modern IHSAA baseball tournament.
It’s called “modern” because the IHSAA tried to start baseball tournaments back in the 1910s. The first one was played in 1912, with South Bend High School beating Indianapolis Manual 3-2.
Another state baseball tourney took place in 1917 at Purdue University, in conjunction with the state track and field meet. Arsenal Tech defeated Kewanna 12-2 in the title game. It was not well-attended, though. The IHSAA’s 1916-17 yearbook said: “There were six Baseball teams competing, thus showing that this sport is not popular among the High Schools.”
So, the IHSAA gave up on baseball for a while. The sport finally returned in 1967, when the tournament as we know it began. By then, of course, the old Fishers High School had transitioned to Hamilton Southeastern, which would go on to have a solid baseball tradition itself.
WINNING FROM THE START
Jasper was a winner out of the gate, blasting through the sectional, regional and semi-state to make it to the 1967 state finals. The Wildcats hold the record for most sectional titles (39), regional championships (26), semi-state titles (15) and state finals appearances (17).
Jasper has won state five times, starting with the last two one-class tournaments in 1996 and 1997, then Class 3A titles in 1998, 2000 and 2006. The head coach for all of those titles is Terry Gobert, who has coached the Wildcats since 1988 and racked up 837 wins.
This year’s Jasper team is 30-2, with its only losses coming to New Albany and Columbus East in April. The Wildcats are on a 21-game win streak and began their post-season run by winning the Evansville Reitz sectional. Jasper beat Castle 6-1 and No. 5-ranked Evansville North 5-4, then easily won the title game over Evansville Central, 10-0 in six innings.
The Wildcats returned to their home at Ruxer Field for the regional, where they beat Floyd Central 2-1 in the semi-finals and No. 3-ranked Center Grove 7-4 in the championship game. Jasper then hosted the semi-state, where it overwhelmed Mount Vernon 17-2.
Tuesday will make the Wildcats’ 10th appearance in a state championship game and guess what? That’s a record, too. It will be the first time Jasper is in a Class 4A state final.
“Jasper is fundamentally sound,” said Cherry. “They do all the little things right, they do not make mistakes, and they put pressure on you to make plays. Jasper does a great job of forcing action through bunts and hit and runs.”
The Wildcats have several solid hitters on the team. Junior Connor Foley is batting .367 and leads the team in RBIs (37), hits (33), doubles (13) and home runs (eight). Senior Eli Hopf holds a .348 average and leads in runs scored with 37, and has 32 hits. Junior Kody Morton is batting at a .314 clip. Cherry said Jasper has “a good balance of speed at the top and power in the middle of the lineup.”
The Wildcats’ likely starting pitcher is senior Grant Stratton, who is unbeaten for the year at 12-0. Stratton holds a 1.07 earned-run average and has tossed 59 strikeouts. Cherry said Stratton is pitching “really well” for the team.
“He does a great job of commanding the zone and changing speeds,” said Cherry.
BATTLING THROUGH
The Tigers come into state with a 23-12 record. It was rough going for Fishers at first, as it started the season 1-4, including three one-run losses.
But the Tigers continued to battle through the season. They were 13-12 on May 13, but have since embarked on a 10-game win streak. At the Westfield sectional, Fishers beat rival Southeastern 7-1, No. 1-ranked Carmel 1-0, then defeated Noblesville 4-0 in the championship.
The Tigers then made themselves at home at Kokomo Municipal Stadium, winning the regional there with victories over No. 8-ranked Homestead 8-4 and Harrison 7-5. Fishers returned to Kokomo for the semi-state, where it came from behind to beat Munster 3-2, taking the lead in the sixth inning with back-to-back RBI singles after trailing the entire game.
“Our guys are bulldogs, fighters, you name the cliché and that is them,” said Cherry. “They do NOT QUIT and believe they are in every game no matter what. It is a special characteristic that the guys have, that’s inside of them.”
Cherry said that championships are won “with great pitching, excellent defense, and timely hitting,” and his team has been accomplishing all three throughout the tournament.
“They never back down, they keep battling, they never quit,” said Cherry.
The Tigers’ top hitters are freshman Jack Brown, who holds a .327 average, leading Fishers in hits with 35 and RBIs with 28. Senior Jack Braun is hitting at a .323 clip, with junior Joey Brenczewski averaging .301, including two triples. Junior Dom Oliverio leads the Tigers in runs scored with 29 and in home runs with three. Freshman Caulin Brown has eight doubles.
The Fishers pitching staff is solid as well. Junior Tate Warner is 6-2 with a 2.43 ERA and a team-leading 87 strikeouts. Jack Brown is 7-2 with a 1.48 ERA and has tossed 67 strikeouts.