By RICH TORRES
FISHERS – When the game-winning out landed in Kiel Brenczewski’s glove at first base, Fishers’ relief pitcher Matthew Wolff made a beeline straight toward backstop Alex Jamieson as the Tigers rushed the field.
After completing a three-game sweep of Class 4A No. 7 Zionsville to clinch their second consecutive Hoosier Crossroads Conference title outright on Saturday, it was time to celebrate.
And fittingly both Wolff and Jamieson were engulfed in the dogpile at Tigers field.
With their HCC repeat hopes on the line, the 4A No. 6 Tigers came out swinging in the series finale and the bullpen kept the Eagles at bay late as Fishers won 7-5 on Senior Day.
“This is just our first dogpile,” Wolff said after the Tigers ended the regular season with their fifth-straight win. “We talked about it postgame, we got to get past the third one, which is where we lost at regional to those guys.”
Nearly a year since Zionsville halted Fishers’ state tournament run in the regional finals, the Tigers scored some payback by overtaking the Eagles for first-place in the HCC and winning the league by two games over the weekend.
But it wasn’t easy.
The program’s 80th win in four years and 50th the past two was a collective effort, led by seniors.
“It’s those 11 seniors that bought in last year with the group,” Fishers head coach Matthew Cherry said. “They carried it on this year and found a way to fight and compete. And the juniors and a couple of sophomores that have bought in also. It’s just a special group.”
Their specialty this season en route to a 23-7 record and 15-3 HCC finish has been resilience, and it came in handy against the Eagles, who were attempting to seize a share of the title.
Down 1-0 early, the Tigers used a four-run top of the first, capped by back-to-back home runs from Wolff and Jamieson, to go ahead 4-3 before an hour-plus rain delay after the top of the second.
Prior to the break, the Eagles pushed starter Grant Richardson’s pitch count into the 50s as the left-handed contended with control issues.
The Eagles scored their first run on a bases-loaded hit batter and added two more in the second as Richardson walked three straight to pack the bags twice. The senior walked nine in four innings and faced five bases-loaded situations, but regrouped after the delay and stranded 10 base runners while striking out four.
The Tigers’ bats supported Richardson in the bottom of the first behind two hits and two Eagles’ errors.
Fishers tied the game 1-1 in the bottom of the first as a pick-off throwing error scored J.J. Woolwine, who got on after getting hit by Zionsville starter and Michigan recruit Riley Bertram.
Senior Craig Yoho reached base on a fielding error and with two outs Wolff broke the tie with his second home run of the season. Wolff, who finished 1-for-1 with two runs scored, blasted a 1-1 offering over the left-field wall.
Jamieson made it two in a row as he drilled his fourth home run over nearly the identical spot. The senior went 2-for-3 with three RBI, including a two-run double in the top of the third.
Jack Roudebush was 1-for-3 with an RBI single during the Tigers’ three-hit, three-run bottom of the third. Ben Burton was 2-for-3.
“There’s something special about these guys and what we do,” Richardson said. “This is a great way to kind of jumpstart our postseason and get us more motivated.”
The bullpen gave up one more Eagles run in the top of the fifth, but Daniel Owens scattered two hits and a walk through two innings, and Wolff nailed it down with a one-hit top of the seventh.
The Tigers left six runners on base while the Eagles stranded 13, including nine in scoring position.
“We knew Fishers was a good team, but we felt if we came out and did our thing, then we would be OK. Even with Richardson on the mound, it was one of those things where they just played better than we did,” Zionsville head coach Jered Moore said.
The defense applied the final touch, with a game-ending double play from Yoho at shortstop to Nick Lukac at second and finally Brenczewski.
“It’s always been a goal of mine since freshman year to win conference and doing it last year was amazing. This year, with our backs against the wall, having to sweep in order to win it outright and having to win two games at least to share it was huge,” Yoho said.
“We battled all the way. It’s awesome to share it with these guys, my senior year, so everything about it is that much sweeter.”
Now, the Tigers will savor the present and prepare with their first postseason game set for Memorial Day at Noblesville’s Dunker Field against North Central in the Sectional 8 semi-finals.
“Two weeks ago, we kind of had a rough stretch. Got some guys healthy and I’m very pleased with how we played this week,” Cherry said. “Offensively, defensively, on the mound, it was a great week for the guys.”
Fishers 7, Zionsville 5
Fishers AB R H RBI
J.J. Woolwine 3 1 1 0
Craig Yoho 3 1 0 0
Grant Richardson 4 0 0 0
Kiel Brenczewski 4 1 1 0
Matthew Wolff 1 2 1 2
Alex Jamieson 3 1 2 3
*Tristan Baker 0 1 0 0
Nick Lukac 2 0 0 0
Jack Roudebush 3 0 1 1
Daniel Owens 0 0 0 0
Ben Burton 3 0 2 0
Totals 26 7 8 6
Score by innings
Zionsville 120 110 0 – 5 7 2
Fishers 403 000 x – 7 8 0
HR: Wolff, Jamieson, 2B: Jamieson, Burton, HBP: Woolwine, Wolff.
Fishers pitching IP R ER H
Grant Richardson 4.0 4 4 4
Daniel Owens 2.0 1 1 2
Matthew Wolff 1.0 0 0 1
Strikeouts: Richardson 4, Owens 4. Walks: Richardson 9, Owens 1.
The Fishers baseball team was in celebration mode after beating Zionsville 7-5 on Saturday. With the win, the Tigers swept the Eagles and won an outright Hoosier Crossroads Conference championship. (Richie Hall)