EAST LANSING – The 64th annual Dean Shippey Diamond Classic got underway on May 19 as the Williamston and Lansing Catholic baseball programs kicked off the action at McLane Stadium on Michigan State’s campus.
These two schools played a tight one in last season’s Diamond Classic, with the Hornets winning a 6-5 nail-biter. It was a similar tale this time around, with the Cougars coming back from a 5-0 deficit to tie the game at 6-6 with just an inning to go.
Then, in the final inning with the bases loaded, sophomore Watson Ferreri, who pitched the final two innings for the Cougars, drew a walk to force the winning run home, giving Lansing Catholic the 7-6 victory.
“We’ve been down before, and we never gave up, just focused on getting one run at a time and throwing strikes,” Lansing Catholic coach Dillon Reust said. “(Williamston) is a great team, their coaching is top tier, but we’re very happy with the result.”
Senior pitcher Brett Palmer pitched 5 1/3 innings for Williamston, allowing three runs on six hits while striking out six. Lansing Catholic sent three different pitchers to the mound, led by junior Connor Weber, who had four strikeouts over 2 1/3 innings.
The Hornets scored one run in the second inning after senior infielder Rudy Marinez made it home during a rundown off an attempted steal. Williamston would take a 2-0 lead in the third inning on a bases-loaded walk drawn by senior Miles Keener.
Williamston plated three more runs in the fourth inning, starting with a wild pitch that scored senior outfielder Jack Hart from third. Seniors Kaleb Nielson and Hawk Harding each delivered RBI singles in the frame to give the Hornets a 5-0 lead.
Sophomore outfielder Watson Ferreri got the Cougars on the board in the bottom of the fourth inning with an RBI single to left. Junior shortstop Ethan Link then delivered a two-run single to bring Lansing Catholic within two. The Cougars had four hits in the inning after recording just one through the first three frames.
Keener came through with a sacrifice fly RBI in the sixth inning to put the Hornets back up by three runs. But, an error-filled bottom frame allowed Lanisng Catholic tie it up. The Hornets committed four errors on the evening.
“We have a lot of work to do still, but now the guys know they can do it,” Reust said. “I don’t know if we’ll see a tougher team than we did today. And if we can come from behind and play the game we did defensively and still win, we’re going to be a very tough team to beat.”
Lansing Catholic (22-3) moves on to the semifinals, where it will face either Okemos, Haslett or Portland on May 27 at McLane Stadium. Williamston (21-8) has two games against Marshall to close the regular season before beginning district play.
Contact Nathaniel Bott at nbott@lsj.com and follow him on X @Nathaniel_Bott
This article originally appeared on Lansing State Journal: Lansing Catholic rallies, walks off Williamston in Diamond Classic opener
Reporting by Nathaniel Bott, Lansing State Journal / Lansing State Journal
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