FREMONT – One loss means the end of the season in the state high school baseball tournament.
But the chance of that happening is significantly reduced when you don’t give opponents many chances to score.
That was the case on Wednesday evening, when Fruitport used its two top pitchers – senior Ryan Bosch and junior Trevor Rusnak – to completely shut down Sparta 6-0 in a first round Division 2 regional tournament game at Fremont Middle School.
Bosch was the big story, striking out 12 batters, including eight in a row at one point, in five innings of work.
Rusnak was also very efficient, preventing Sparta from getting anything going in the final two innings.
The really good news is that both pitchers will be fresh and eligible to throw again on Saturday, up to their maximum number of pitches, when Fruitport will try to battle its way to a berth in the state semifinals.
It will start at 12:30 p.m., when the Trojans will play either Frankenmuth or Saginaw Swan Valley in a regional championship game at in Petoskey.
If they win, the Trojans will compete in a Division 2 state quarterfinal game at 3 p.m. at the same location.
Two wins on Saturday would put Fruitport in next week’s Division 2 semifinals at Michigan State University, and with pitching like they have, who knows?
“That’s been Ryan all year,” said Fruitport head coach Nick Reed about his top starter. “Today he threw 68 pitches and had 12 strikeouts. That gives us a lot of confidence.”
Reed said having the big lead gave the Trojans the luxury of taking Bosch out before he was tired out, so he can be fresh this weekend.
“Having him on Saturday is going to be huge,” the coach said.
Bosch, a recent graduate who will study and pitch at Wake Forest University next year, got off to a little bit of a shaky start on Wednesday, due to a few defensive wobbles.
Sparta’s first batter reached on an error, then advanced to third when two pitches got past the catcher and went to the backstop.
That’s when Bosch dug deep and showed the big crowd in Fremont what he could do.
He struck out the third, fourth and fifth hitters in the first inning, stranding the Sparta runner on third.
Then he struck out all three batters in the second inning, and the first two in the third. He didn’t allow a runner past first base the rest of the way, and only allowed one hit (an infield single) and one walk. Rusnak allowed only one hit in his two innings, and coaxed three Sparta batters into easy pop-up outs to close the game.
“It’s win or go home, so you have to compete every pitch, stay within yourself very pitch,” Bosch said. “I couldn’t do it without my teammates behind me.
“I think we have what it takes to keep moving forward. We’re all pumped up and ready for what’s next.”
Fruitport’s hitters did most of their damage in the first inning.
Braxton Ward led off with a single, Bosch sent him to third with another single, then a run scored on an infield hit by Hudson Hazekamp.
Rusnak followed with a walk, then Dexter Lillmars delivered a two-run double to right field, putting the Trojans up 3-0.
One more run scored on a wild pitch, and Fruitport headed to the second inning with a 4-0 lead.
The Trojans added a run in the fourth inning when Ward was hit by a pitch, advanced to third on a single by Jax Flynn, and scored on a passed ball.
The last run came with two outs sin the sixth when Avery Lambers was safe on an error, advanced to second on a passed ball, then scored on an RBI single by Satchel Norwood.
The Trojans also helped seal the win with some heads-up defense.
In the third inning, a Sparta batter had an infield single but rounded first base a bit too far and was gunned down trying to get back. In the fourth, a Sparta batter walked but was picked off first. In the sixth, a Sparta batter reached on a grounder when the throw to first was wild, but got greedy and tried to get to third base and was thrown out.
All-in-all, it was a pretty relaxed, professional effort by the Trojans, who seemed confident and ready to win from start to finish.
It was a big difference from two weekends ago, when Fruitport dropped both games of a doubleheader to Hopkins and squandered a chance to win a conference championship, then lost two games the next day in their own holiday tournament.
The Trojans have now won four straight games since then, starting with their last regular season game, two more on Saturday in districts, and Wednesday’s regional matchup.
“We’re playing good ball, like our backs were to the wall and we had something to prove,” Coach Reed said. “The guys are loose and having fun. They are locked in.”
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