Bulldogs score 7 in 5th to top Lake Central 11-3, capture Regional title

A USA-365.com Special Report by Mark Smith

6-05-2008

Team (Record) / Inning	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	R	H	E
CROWN POINT (28-5-2)	2	0	0	0	7	0	2	11	9	2
LAKE CENTRAL (22-9-2)	0	0	3	0	0	0	0	3	6	2

Wednesday, 6-04-2008 - 84 degrees & sunny at Class 4A, Regional Championship in ST. JOHN, IN

WP - Blake Mascarello (9-0) 6K, 1 walk (2.3 innings)
SP - Mike Hernandez (CP) 3K, 0 walks (3 2/3 innings)
LP - Eric Summers (6-3) 3K, 5 walks (4 innings)

CROWN POINT (28-5-2) starters
Nick Hladek (C) 1-for-2, 3 walks, HR (#8) RBI, stolen base
Eric Clayton (SS) 0-for-3, 2 walks
Mike Kozlowski (3B) 3-for-3 2 HRs, (#13 & 14) 5 RBIs, 2 walks
Jeff Limbaugh (1B) 2-for-5, RBI
Scott Donley (2B) 0-for-3, 2 walks
Blake Mascarello (P) 0-for-4
Jim Donley (RF) 1-for-3, double walk, stolen base
Russell Chick (CF) 0-for-3
Jim Lindeman (LF) 1-for-4, HR (#3)

LAKE CENTRAL (23-8-2) starters
Kyle Kaluza (CF) 1-for-4
Anthony Olund (2B) 1-for-4
Ryan Boss (RF) 1-for-4, HR (#16) 3 RBI
Eric Summers (P) 1-for-2, walk
Steve Traficante (DH) 0-for-3
Matt Skura (1B) 1-for-3
Frank Pluskota (3B) 0-for-2
Frank Ruvoli (C) 1-for-3
Joey Kawa (LF) 0-for-3

Click Here for 2008 CP Baseball Schedule

ST. JOHN, IN (6-05-2008) - The Indiana High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) mid-week regional baseball championship game is just an awful idea that ends with this baseball season. But, to be honest, the format has smiled on Crown Point's baseball program. The Bulldogs used power pitching and power hitting to win the 4A regional title for the third time in four years, pulling away from Lake Central 11-3 in mid-summer heat Wednesday.

The Bulldogs will play McCutcheon (20-12) in the Lafayette Semistate semifinals Saturday at Loeb Stadium, trying to reach the state finals for the first time in school history.

The soon-to-be ash-canned baseball format requires a team to win six playoff games in 13 days to reach the state finals, something that's okay for the National Basketball Association but is way too much for high school players playing in unpredictable spring weather.

There was no time for CP to enjoy what they'd accomplished. After defeating LC for the second time in five meetings (two ended in complete-game ties), reaching the final eight among big school teams in the state for the second consecutive year was a brief subject before heading for the bus.

"That was something we talked about just now," said Steve Strayer, who is in his sixth season. "I don't know if Crown Point has ever done that before. Now we want to go back to the semistate and try to do a better job than we did last year (a 9-2 semifinal loss to Penn).

Junior Mike Kozlowski, who hit two home runs through the warm, humid South Lake County winds, was aware of the achievement, but also mentioned it only briefly because there was no time to dwell on it.

"It's something Crown Point has never done before. First time ever. It's very exciting."

The most exciting part was the middle innings after Ryan Boss hit his 16th home run of the season for Lake Central to give the Indians a 3-2 lead against CP right-hander Mike Hernandez.

In the fifth, CP's Nick Hladek and Eric Clayton both walked against LC starter Eric Summers (6-3), who had allowed only three hits to that point. Batting with nobody out, Kozlowski, a 6-foot, 215-pound infielder, seemed to injure himself on his first swing.

After CP trainer Trent Trump attended to Kozlowski, the Bulldog football player hobbled back into the batters box and launched a 360-foot homer over the left field fence to start a seven-run rally. If Kozlowski has to leave the game at that point, or if he hits a ground ball and can't run, the outcome of the game changes.

"I was pretty close to coming out," Kozlowski admitted. "I couldn't walk. It worked out for me, though."

"He cramped up," said Strayer. "But the trainer worked on him and he was okay. He even got in there to pitch an inning at the end. In a weird kinda way, the game worked out for our pitchers. Everybody should be ready for Saturday."

"If we're going to have a chance Saturday, Blake has to keep doing what he did today. Mike has to pitch a little better than he had today and Koz has to keep what he's doing."

Kozlowski, who is batting .480, has now hit five home runs (at least one in each game) in four playoff games, all on the road. If anyone has ever hit a home run in every playoff game all the way to the state finals, no one could remember it. The 1,000 on-base percentage in four playoff games is also ridiculous. You don't even do that in Little League, much less against Class 4A high schools. Kozlowski, who plays for the 19-and-under Hammond Chiefs in the summer and has played in the Babe Ruth World Series, has 53 runs batted in after 35 games, also believed to be a CP school record.

"Playing in the (Senior Babe Ruth) World Series is just like this," he says. "The same situation. The games are intense. It's very good experience. I knew we'd come back today. I'm just seeing the ball real well."

Lake Central pitchers were hurt by 10 walks. The Indians were in position to win mid-way through the game, but the final score didn't indicate that.

"We don't have anybody we can bring in who can shut things down," said LC coach Todd Iwema. "That's something we have to work on for next year. They're such a good team I wish them all the luck in the world Saturday. We fight had on the field but their players have always been very respectful as far as I'm concerned."

LC center fielder Kyle Kaluza made the play of the year in the fifth inning after CP had sent 12 batters to the plate and scored seven runs. Jeff Limbaugh hit a long, high drive to the left center field fence where Kaluza leaped up to the top of the six foot fence, reaching above the fence to grab what would have been a grand slam home run.

"He's done that before," said Iwema. "He stole a home run against them (CP) over there. We've got pretty much everybody back next year. They're senior dominated right now and it's just tough to beat them."

DOG NOTES: Saturday's McCutcheon-Crown Point game will be aired live by The Region Sports Network on WJOB (1230) AM. If CP advances to the semistate championship game to face Penn or Homestead, that game will also be aired Saturday night at 6:30 p.m., CDT.

Mike Kozlowski's second HR of the game Wednesday erased a 3-2 LC lead and started a CP runaway, the second time this season he has hit two home runs in the same game. Kozlowski hit two home runs on April 7 in a 5-0 win over Hanover Central.

In CP's 22-8 win over Lake Central on April 25, Jeff Limbaugh hit two home runs.

Jordan Lindeman and LC's Ryan Boss, who hit homers at the regional game, also both hit home runs in the 5-5 tie between CP and LC on April 22. In the four games played at Lake Central this season, CP was 2-0-2. The only Lake Central win came in Crown Point.

Kozlowski reached base five times in five at bats and he has reached base 13 times in a row in five games. He is 9-for-10 with three walks and he has reached on an error. Tuesday, Crown Point had a Boone Grove rooting section in the stands at Lake Central.

"(Boone junior center fielder Nick) DiMarco and I are best friends," said Kozlowski. "(pitcher Kyle) Ferber, (Lynn) Strohl's dad taught me a lot. (Blake) Klisurich. Drew Kidd moved in and I knew him. Wayland Roach. I know all of them. We've got to meet at Victory Field."

Victory Field, the 14,000-seat home of the Triple-A professional baseball Indianapolis Indians, is the home of the baseball state finals. Boone Grove (26-3-1) will be playing Churubusco in the Class 2A South Bend Semistate semifinals inside South Bend's Covaleski Stadium Saturday.

Lake Central, which lost the regional title game 10-0 last year at CP, graduates only three seniors and returns 8 of the 9 players who started the game Wednesday. LC was 1-4-2 against CP and LaPorte. The Indians were 21-5 against everyone else.

CP, which was 29-3 last year but graduated 6 starters, is 28-5-2 and will play McCutcheon (20-12), a 5-3 winner over Westfield Monday night (6-2-8). Penn and Homestead (who will meet at 11:00 a.m. EDT) are in the other half of the bracket at Loeb Stadium in Lafayette.

CP wins back-to-back regional championships for the first time in the 42-year history of the state tourney. Crown Point, which did win a boys tennis state title in 1970, has never reached an IHSAA state finals in any boys team sport. CP has not won a state title in any sport in 23 years. CP is 3-1 in mid-week regional games and the Bulldogs are 2-1 against LC in regional championship games but that requires an explanation.

CP's only midweek regional loss was 2-0 at Munster in 2006. In 2005, CP defeated Munster 2-0 on a Tuesday night in Crown Point. In 2004, the IHSAA briefly experimented with no semistate level for baseball. CP won the sectional that season, but lost to Lake Central 4-1 in the regional championship game.

The IHSAA midweek baseball regional final was a concept that lasted only four years and that was about four years too long. It interferes with the final week of school and graduation and, since extensive travel on school nights was involved at the lower classes, the road team was at a distinct disadvantage. Teams had to start at 4:00 p.m. or 4:30 p.m. and race against the descending darkness. The reason LC played CP on Wednesday was that LC's graduation was on Tuesday night.

In 2009, the baseball sectional quarterfinals will begin on Thursday night of what now is the final week of the regular season with the semifinals (the single day of the state tournament that involves the most teams) on Saturday. The regional and semistate tournaments may both be four-team one day Saturday tournaments. Few high schools have graduation on Friday and Saturday and that's when all state tournament events probably should be held. Baseball playoff games can be played all day on Saturday at schools that do not have field lights.

This upcoming concept may also be short-lived. There is a proposal for the IHSAA to reduce the number of state playoff classes from four to three. That idea may be voted on for the 2009-2010 school year which would be the 2010 baseball season.

2008 (4A) Crown Point Bulldogs (25-5-2, 11-3 DAC)
Coach Steve Strayer - (112-45-1, 5 years) 29-3 in 2007
DAC games in CAPS

Northwest Indiana Challenge
4-3 (W) 10-0 at Highland (17-10)
4-4 (W) 9-2 Munster (19-10)
4-5 (W) 10-4 at Griffith (17-12)

4-7 (W) 5-0 Hanover Central (20-9)
4-8 (W) 9-0 MERRILLVILLE (5-20)
4-12 (S) at (SB) Clay - rain -canceled
4-12 (S) at (SB) Washington - rain -canceled
4-14 (W) 12-2 Michigan City (10-11) in Gary
4-15 (W) 5-4 (8 innings) LaPORTE (21-9)
4-16 (W) 19-3 VALPARAISO (13-15)
4-18 (W) 8-6 CHESTERTON (18-10)
4-19 (W) 6-1 Huntington North (18-3)
4-22 (T) 5-5 (8 innings) at LAKE CENTRAL (22-9-2)
4-23 (T) 10-10 at LAKE CENTRAL (22-9-2)
4-24 (W) 5-3 PORTAGE (12-16)
4-25 (W) 22-8 at LAKE CENTRAL (22-9-2)
4-26 (W) 14-7 Morton (15-12)
4-28 (W) 9-0 MERRILLVILLE (5-20)
4-30 (L) 2-3 (8 innings) LaPORTE (21-9)

Plymouth Tournament
5-3 (W) 13-0 at Plymouth (12-15) semifinals
5-3 (W) 8-6 (Allen Co.) Carroll (22-10) title
5-2 (L) 5-7 MICHIGAN CITY (10-14)
5-5 (Lansing, Illinois) Illiana Christian (30-4) postponed
5-6 (W) 12-1 at VALPARAISO (13-15)
5-8 (W) 4-3 at CHESTERTON (18-10)
5-9 (W) 5-3 Boone Grove (26-3-1)
5-13 (L) 5-6 LAKE CENTRAL (22-9-2)
5-15 (W) 7-4 PORTAGE (12-16)

Crown Point Classic Tournament
5-17 (W) 17-16 (8 innings) Kankakee Valley (10-17-1)
5-17 (L) 4-9 Northridge (24-4) title

5-20 (W) 11-1 (5 innings) at Lowell (14-16)
5-21 (W) 15-5 Griffith (17-12)
5-22 (L) 1-2 at Andrean (30-1)
5-23 (W) 3-2 Elkhart Memorial (20-10)

4A Sectional 2 (at LaPorte)
5-26 (W) 12-5 at LaPorte (21-9)
5-28 (W) 6-2 Hobart (12-17)
5-30 (W) 15-4 (5 innings) Chesterton (18-10)

4A Regional Championship
6-4 (W) 11-3 at Lake Central (22-9-2)

4A Semistate
6-7 (Sat) vs. McCutcheon (20-12) 12 noon (CDT)
6-7 (Sat) vs. No. 1 Penn (29-3) or Homestead (24-5) 6:00 p.m.

4A state Championship game
6-14 (Sat) vs. probably No. 2 (Indianapolis) Cathedral (29-3) 8:00 p.m. (EDT)