BLOOMINGTON — By the end of the post-game interview, Liam Smith was just a face in a crowd.
It’s kind of like that these days with the Bloomington North baseball team, which is getting hitting up and down the lineup and solid pitching from multiple sources. Different guys, different days, but always someone stepping up.
After the shock of seeing Terre Haute North rally with two runs to tie it in the top of the seventh inning just one strike away from defeat, Smith’s RBI walk-off double to right center sent the host Cougars home happy, 4-3, with their sixth win in a row Tuesday, April 21.
“We got a lot of good bonds in the dugout,” said Smith, with teammates quietly lined up behind him, taking a step closer with each question that came Smith’s way. “We’re all really comfortable with each other and we have a lot of fun.
“We just attack every day at practice. We’re getting a lot better every day.”
It also puts North in the catbird’s seat in Conference Indiana play at 3-0, with rival South (1-1) and Southport yet to go. Not that anyone in maroon and gold is peeking ahead in the schedule.
“What’s the next biggest game we have?” North coach Richard Hurt asked his team. “Saturday’s game. That’s the next biggest game. You can’t get caught looking down the road.”
Still, there’s time to celebrate this key win, a tiny bit of revenge for last year’s sectional final loss. It ended up making the most of another tough effort by Luke Freel, who had his best start this season, going 6⅓ innings.
“With Luke on the mound, that gives us a shot against anybody,” Hurt said. “I thought he pitched very, very well. Very tough. Pitched through a lot of traffic. But then ran into the 120-pitch limit. But we made several plays throughout the game that really helped us.”
Not the least of which was Smith’s big hit.
“Liam obviously stepping up there at the end,” Hurt said. “I bunted him the inning before. It’s very rarely you bunt your No. 4 hitter, but we needed it. And then he stepped up and got the biggest hit there.”
Along with the timely hitting, pitching has also been coming from several sources during the run.
Last week, Miller went three shutout innings to secure the win at Terre Haute South. Brogan Hanna went seven innings, giving up four hits, one run, one walk and fanning 10 in a win over Columbus North. Bohdi Pulley had a complete game against Martinsville in Game 1 of a doubleheader (six shutout innings, three hits, nine strikeouts) and a group effort got the job done in Game 2.
“It’s amazing to see,” Smith said. “Every single one of these boys work really hard all year round. All of them deserve each and every moment.”
Mr. Smith walks it off
Zack Sipes got the rally started with a leadoff walk. North’s Elio Miller tried to bunt him over, but pitcher Nate Millington was all over it to get the lead runner. Then Smith smashed his game-winner as Miller joyously rounded the bases.
Freel struck out 10, the last to start the seventh before giving up a base hit.
He gave way to Miller, who got a fly to left, then a single to Indiana University commit Briar Goda. A 1-2 offering to the next batter, Brayden Dean, had strike three written all over it. Not so, ruled the umpire, just a bit outside.
Next pitch, Dean laced a single to left that scored both runners, the last avoiding a tag at the plate. Miller fanned the next batter to keep it tied at 3 to pick up the W.
“I was just looking for something in the heart of the plate,” Smith said. “I had a lot of confidence in my swing to catch it out front. He threw one right over the (plate) and I decided to take my best hack at it.
“It worked out. Just glad to get it done for my team and myself.”
Scratching out a win
North had been playing small-ball all night, knowing it would likely be in a tight game against one of the conference favorites and last year’s sectional champs.
“Because of last year, I knew we we’re going to have to be really gritty and confident in the box, so that what we emphasized today, getting our swings off and playing really tough defense in the field,” Smith said.
Defensively, Jack Williamson saved some big outs at first base.
Offensively, Hurt was looking for execution from the players he asked to bunt, not an easy thing to do on turf, and from the hitters that followed to bring home the guys in scoring position.
“Guys are doing what we needed them to do right now,” Hurt said. “And that’s all we need right now.”
It worked in the second when two walks were followed by an RBI single from Harrison Lloyd.
In the third, North made it 2-0 when Freel walked, went to second on Sipes’ sac bunt and scored when Miller greeted reliever Nate Millington with a sharp RBI single.
The Cougars couldn’t make it work in the fourth, with a runner gunned down at the plate on a bunt. But in the fifth, after THN got within 2-1, Miller singled and was sacrificed to second by Smith, the cleanup hitter. Then with two outs and a 1-2 count, Jack Williamson came through with an RBI base hit for a 3-1 lead.
“We feel pretty good,” Hurt said. “We’re playing good baseball. We’re doing the things we need to do to win.
“We did a lot of good things. There’s some things we’ve got to work on, too. But I thought it was a very, very gutty performance from us.”
This article originally appeared on The Herald-Times: Group effort has Bloomington North baseball on a 6-game win streak
Reporting by Jim Gordillo, The Herald-Times / The Herald-Times
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