A Saturday split

Bureau Valley's Austin Peterson (16) hops on home plate as he is greeted by nine of his closest friends after a three-run homer in the fifth inning of Saturday's second game of a doubleheader at Prather Field in Princeton. The Storm rallied from a 9-0 deficit, but fell short 9-8 as the host Tigers salvaged a split. (BCR photo/Kevin Hieronymus)

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PRINCETON — As one of just a few players on a varsity team just barely old enough to have a driver’s license, Princeton senior Zach Smith knew it was his time to make a statement.

After the Princeton Tigers dropped the opener of Saturday’s doubleheader at Prather Field to rival Bureau Valley 7-5, Smith did just that.

The senior right-hander won his first career varsity game by pitching the Tigers to a 9-8 win over the Storm. Smith was big at the plate, too, collecting a pair of RBI hits in the first and third innings to stake the Tigers to a 9-0 lead.

“I wanted to step up and be a leader and help the team,” Smith said. “It’s always real good feeling to beat them.”

PHS coach Bob Bima was happy to win the second game after dropping the first. Especially, how the Tigers (2-2) came back in a big way, scoring seven runs in the first inning.

“You always get a sick feeling in your gut when you lose the first game, because there’s pressure to win the second,” he said. “We jumped on them early, but really had to hang on there at the end. We opened the door and made a couple of mistakes, but luckily were able to close the door at the end of the game.”

Just the same, BV coach John Matlick was happy to take the first game.

“It was a big deal for us,” said the first-year Storm coach. “I know all these kids play together in the summer. They were fired up and ready to go. I think we had a little bit of nerves. It was good for our guys to get a win like that. Second game I was a little disappointed how we started off, but we battled back.

“Princeton’s a very, very good team. They’re younger than us. That’s a scary thing. We might have snuck one in on them there.”

Game 1

Bureau Valley 7, Princeton 5: The Storm (6-4) struck for four runs in the first inning off Tiger starter Brik Wedekind, including RBI hits by Ryan Hix, T.J. Hahne, Paul Elliott and Michael Weidner.

The Tigers got one run back in the second on back-to-back doubles by Wedekind and Smith, and another run in the third with the help of a Storm error.

Justin Doty, who led off the first inning with a single and scored, turned the trick again in the fourth. After he singled, Wedekind walked Hix and Ringle to load the bases and Bima brought in sophomore lefty Brock Schmidt in relief of Wedekind. He was greeted by a sac fly by Hahne to give the Storm a 5-2 lead.

Henegar led off the Tiger half of the fourth with a double and scored as Clary reached on an error. Daniel Murray singled Clary home to make it 5-4, Storm.

Each team scored in the fifth and the Storm collected an insurance run in the seventh to go up 7-5.

That was all King, the Storm sophomore southpaw, needed to finish what he started. He pitched around a leadoff double by Wedekind, in the bottom of the seventh, for the win. He scattered eight hits, walked three and struck out three.

Game 2

Princeton 9, Bureau Valley 8: The Tigers paraded 11 batters to the plate in the first inning, scoring runs to chase Storm starter Paul Elliott. Reid Clary led off with a single, Daniel Murray and Kyle Anderson singled, Michael Murray had a RBI double and Smith a RBI single.

Smith added a RBI double in the third, off the fence, and came around to score to make it 9-0.

“He’s got a lot of power if he keeps that shoulder up,” Bima said.

Bima said it was to nice to get the big lead early and put the pressure on BV to come from behind this time.

On the mound, Smith managed to pitch out of trouble nearly every inning. He left the bases loaded in the first and stranded two runners in the third and fourth innings.

Then came the fifth inning and Austin Peterson. With three runs already in, the sophomore outfielder brought in three more with one swing of the bat with a long blast to left.

“That was kind of out of nowhere,” Matlick said. “I know he’s a pull hitter, but I didn’t know he could do that. He is a strong, athletic kid and got a lot of natural ability.”

Bima turned to senior Jonathon Henegar to get the final two outs of the inning and quickly reinserted all of his starters, who had been substituted, when the Tigers came to bat.

The Storm scored two runs on three straight hits, but Henegar retired Justin Doty and King to the plate to leave the tying run at third.

“Smittie did a good job. We took him a little too long probably, but he was throwing BBs and his curve ball was doing a good job as well,” Bima said. “And Henny came in and answered our prayers and gave us the last three innings.”

• Notes: The split left the Storm 6-4. Sometimes they look like they’re in mid-season form, Matlick said, and sometimes they don’t. “The second game looked like our first game of the year,” he said. ... Smith notched his first varsity career win while Henegar got his first varsity save, Bima said. ... Senior Justin Doty had three hits in Game 1 for BV and Tevis three in the second. Lead-ing Tiger batsmen were Wedekind, with three hits in the opener, and Daniel Murray with two in each game. ... The Tigers saluted Tiger grandma Bernice Wedekind on her 85th birthday Saturday, by singing happy birthday and giving her an autographed team picture. ... PHS swept Saturday’s F/S action.

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