LAMAR-A 1988 graduate of Lamar High School, Bayfield baseball mom Koel Phelps didn't hesitate to greet Lamar Coach Dave Fassiotto, one of her former teachers, and said to be retiring at season's end after first coaching as an assistant in 1980.
Set to become a 2016 graduate of Bayfield High School the next afternoon, senior son Zane Phelps wasted even less time heading up the May 14 post-game handshake line. Fassiotto's Savages took a big step towards scoring him the ultimate send-off present by edging BHS in the 3A-District 3 Tournament championship, 3 to 1.
The Lamar team was relieved to have seen Wolverine senior Brody McGhehey's seventh-inning, one-out liner zip right at second baseman Lucas Watson.
Making the snag, Watson then flipped the ball to shortstop Miguel Rodriguez to double off Michael Gettman-pinch-running for Hayden Farmer, who'd been hit by a Dalton Chandler pitch. The double play secured a tense triumph for the state tournament's initial 4-seed over the unlucky #13.
Given the start on the mound, Phelps would receive a no-decision upon exiting after dealing two innings of one-run ball.
Bayfield was hoping to capitalize on McGhehey's complete-game 9-2 defeat of 20-seed Bennett earlier in the day, but that didn't happen.
Denied any sort of production in the bottom of the first inning at Merchants Park, Phelps managed to strand the bases loaded. Lamar led off their second inning with a double to left, then scored two batters later when catcher Andres Guevara did likewise, giving LHS the "first blood" (the announcer's words) advantage.
Giving Lamar the battle they'd expected, Bayfield quickly tied the contest in the top of the third when Farmer-BHS' second-game spark in the field and with the bat-ripped a double to left, and hustled around to score when Rodriguez botched senior Taed Heydinger's grounder.
Senior Kelton McCoy, relieving Phelps, held Lamar scoreless in the third and fourth. But after allowing a leadoff single by BHS senior Logan Sabinski in the top of the fourth, Chandler (W, CG; 6 H, R, 0 BB, 2 HB, 7 K) settled into an ideal groove. Starting with a called third strike freezing designated hitter Austin Baughman, Chandler retired 10 Wolverines consecutively before plunking Farmer with one away in the top of the seventh.
During that crucial stretch, Farmer's smash to the left-field fence, hauled in by left fielder Evan Reed, and McCoy's sharp fifth-inning liner to Forney in center were Bayfield's only threatening advances. Lamar got ahead for good in the bottom of the fifth when Rodriguez lashed a two-out single to right-center, plating Chandler's courtesy runner Brandon Chavira and DH Colton Eberhardt after Chandler (0-2, BB) walked and Eberhardt (1-2, BB) doubled him over to third.
BHS junior rightfielder Fred Edwards gunned Rodriguez (2-3, R, 2 RBI) out trying to advance to second, but the damage was done and compounded when senior Noah Loutherback (0-2, HBP), Edwards (1-3) and Sabinski (1-3) all struck out trying to answer in the top of the sixth.
McCoy (L; 4 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 2 K) managed to maroon Watson and Geddes in holding LHS scoreless in the home half, but neither he nor Phelps (2-3) would get one last swing after a well-positioned Watson leapt and squeezed McGhehey's drive, dangerously directed towards the gap in right-center.
Heydinger went 1-4 and Farmer 1-2, but McGhehey went 0-4 and McCoy 0-3 as the Wolverines finished the season 16-5 overall and the inspired Savages climbed to 17-4.
TAMING THE TIGERS: Starting with Heydinger's solo homer leading off the bottom of the first, Bayfield broke out to a 7-0 lead in less than two frames against Bennett and junior starter Luke McClanahan and had few problems in ultimately prevailing by seven.
McGhehey drilled a two-run tater in the bottom of the sixth off second reliever Cutter Smith and also retired the last 10 Tigers he faced, walking five but striking out 10.
He allowed only two hits as well, a Smith single in the top of the first and a McClanahan single in the second. Bennett (10-7 overall) didn't score until a fielder's choice, walk and two-base error off Gettman's glove in left produced a pair of unearned runs in the fourth.
McGhehey led the Wolverines' way offensively by going 3-for-4, needing only a triple for the cycle, and scored three times with as many driven in.
Heydinger was 2-3 with a walk, three runs and an RBI, and Phelps 2-4 with a triple, two runs and an RBI.
McCoy was 2-3 with a sacrifice-fly, run and an RBI, Loutherback 2-3 with two singles, and Sabinski 1-3 with two RBI on a key first-inning single.
