High school baseball notebook: Recovering
BY MIKE BROWN World Sports Writer
Tuesday, May 01, 2012
5/01/12 at 2:11 AM
Sand Springs utility player Pake Wise was doing better Monday after taking a pitched ball to the helmet in Friday's 4-2 loss at Jenks.
Wise will have to miss the Class 6A regional tournament with the concussion he received when Jenks right-hander Thomas Hatch hit him with a fastball in the seventh inning, splitting his helmet.
Wise was taken to the hospital and had a ruptured ear drum, lacerations and diminished hearing, but doctors were expecting a full recovery.
"He said he was feeling better (Monday morning), but he still had a ringing in his ear," acting Sandite head coach Scott Watkins said.
Watkins said Wise will have to sit at least 10 days because of the school's concussion policy but might be able to play if the Sandites qualify for next week's state tournament.
Jenks head coach Dennis Keeley said no one was more upset than Hatch, a junior rated among the area's top pro pitching prospects.
"He was very upset, and I know the Hatch family made contact with (Wise's) family to keep track of how the young man was doing," Keeley said.
Keeley said Hatch was struggling with his fastball command throughout the game and insisted that the scary pitch, which he guessed to be around 88 mph, was strictly unintentional.
Lost in the commotion, Jenks captured the District 6A-4 title with Friday's win and Saturday's forfeit from the Sandites, who ran afoul of an OSSAA scheduling rule.
Hatch (7-1) threw a two-hitter with 11 strikeouts, Allan Beer drove in the go-ahead run and Grant Maxey drove in two others.
Red-hot Redskins: Union has won nine of its last 10 heading into the playoffs.
"We're starting to do things as a team that we haven't done all season," head coach Shawn Newkirk said.
Braden Martin drove in the winning run in consecutive games last week. He had a walkoff single on Senior Night as the Redskins downed Broken Arrow 8-7 and another game-winning hit in Friday's win over Houston High of Germantown, Tenn.
Kyler Sout is batting .433 since taking over in the leadoff spot on April 12. The Redskins, 13-12 after a 6-2 loss to Midwest City in the Stillwater tournament on April 11, beat the host Pioneers the next day and have lost once since. They're now 22-13.
The Redskins have had strong senior leadership. Brandon Cuddy is batting .516 with eight RBIs during the streak. Zack Ziegenhorn struck out a career-high 14 in an 8-1 win over Bixby.
Jordan Harris is hitting. 482 during the streak and Garrett Odom has 15 RBIs.
Quick hitters: As expected, Stillwater was given the regional homefield edge when Sand Springs forfeited its right to host over a scheduling snafu. ... In a similar situation, Guthrie forfeited the right to host in the 5A playoffs and suspended head coach Jon Chappell. ... Class 4A No. 1 Berryhill received no favors, getting No. 13 Inola and dangerous Cascia Hall and Claremore Sequoyah loaded into the Chiefs' regional. ... Ed Yock notched his 500th coaching win earlier this season, his 28th at Morris. ... Caney Valley's Jarrod Allen went 7-for-10 with six doubles in a pair of district wins over Pawhuska.
