By Fred Kroner
Hayden Brazelton pitched a two-hit shutout and cracked a home run Wednesday (May 18) as St. Joseph-Ogden opened the baseball postseason with a 15-0 Class 2A regional semifinal shutout over Paxton-Buckley-Loda at Hoopeston.
Brazelton (8-0) walked no one and struck out three batters in throwing his third shutout and the team’s eighth of the spring.
He also sparked the offense with three hits, three runs and three RBI.
Andrew Beyers, Coby Miller, Griffin Roesch and Charles Voorhees all socked two hits apiece. Voorhees and Connor Hale delivered two RBI apiece.
Beyers touched home plate three times. Scoring two runs apiece were Tanner Jacob, Luke Landrus and Voorhees.
On Monday (May 16), the St. Joseph-Ogden baseball regular season ended exactly the way it started.
In their final regular-season match, the Spartans produced a 14-2 win with Avian Gerdes earning the win.
The opponent in the first-game 14-2 win on March 15 was Armstrong-Potomac. The opponent in the 14-2 finale on Monday was Prairie Central.
Gerdes (3-0) pitched four innings against the Hawks, allowing two hits and no walks while striking out four batters. Caleb Ochs worked a scoreless and hitless fifth inning. Gerdes was also the winner in the season’s first game.
SJ-O had no shortage of offensive heroes against Prairie Central.
Voorhees’ three hits included two triples and a double. Brazelton’s two hits were both triples. Landrus and Miller also cracked two hits.
Voorhees and Brazelton each tallied three runs. Miller and Roesch scored twice apiece. Landrus, Voorhees and Beyers all recorded two RBI.
SJ-O (33-2) returns to action on Saturday (May 21) at Hoopeston in the regional championship game against either Bismarck-Henning/Rossville-Alvin or Clifton Central. The Spartans have won 25 consecutive games.
