RELATED: State berth a dream come true
Paul Nevius, an assistant coach on Barhorst’s staff, played on the school’s state final four team in 1975. Nevius spoke to the players first. Then on Tuesday, Don Hoendorf, a member of CJ’s 1970 state championship team, talked to the team during a dinner at Marion’s Piazza.
“The biggest thing is we’re just trying to get them to stay relaxed,” Barhorst said. “Be confident and worry about yourself and your team and don’t worry about what the other team is doing. I know it’s a nervous situation, but the more relaxed we can be, the better we’re going to play. The looser they stay, the less mistakes they’ll make.”
The Eagles (22-4) will play No. 7 Steubenville (28-4) in the Division II state semifinals at Huntington Park. CJ advanced with a 4-3 victory Saturday against Columbus DeSales at Mason High School.
“I think getting by DeSales, that gave them a little more confidence,” Barhorst said. “They figured out they belong here when we took down a pretty powerful team that’s been there several times. I think they’re pretty confident that either one of our pitchers can win us a game when we need one.”
PHOTOS: CJ beats DeSales
The other semifinal pits No. 2 Maumee (22-9) against Tallmadge (23-7) at 7 p.m. The winners play for the state championship at 1 p.m. Saturday.
Of the four state semifinalists, only CJ and Tallmadge have won state titles. Tallmadge won it all in 2002. That was its last state appearance.
Maumee finished second in 2001. Steubenville was the state runner-up in 2004 and lost 6-1 to Defiance in the semifinals last season.
Steubenville beat Indian Valley 7-1 in the regional semifinals and beat No. 19 Athens 9-2 in the regional final on Sunday. Senior left-hander Nicky Zorne started the regional semifinal. Freshman right-hander Calvin Bickerstaff started the regional final.
EARLIER: CJ beats Waynesville in regional semis
This is the fifth final four appearance for Steubenville head coach Fred Heatherington, who has led the program since 1989.
“We know at this point everyone there’s going to be good,” Barhorst said. “You just prepare yourself for what you need to do, as far as playing good defense, taking good swings and making sure you throw strikes. But as far as knowing what their team is, what they have, we’re just going to have to find out when we get there.”
As of Tuesday, Barhorst hadn’t decided whether to start senior Garrett Wissman (4-0, 1.30 ERA), who pitched in the regional semifinals, or junior Ryan Peltier (9-0, 1.06), who started the regional final. Barhost planned to make a decision Wednesday.
“It’s going to depend on lineup wise who I think is going to be a better fit defensively,” Barhorst said. “When we make these pitching decisions, it kind of changes the defense around somewhat. It’s not a definite same rotation for sure. They’re kind of 1 and 1A anyway. I don’t think either one of them is my No. 1 or my No. 2.”
About the Author