It was senior night on the diamond at Chuckey-Doak on Friday night, and for the second time this week the Black Knights defeated North Greene by the same exact score of 11-1.
“We came out and kicked it around a little bit and they scored a run off two mistakes that we made and we didn’t make another one the rest of the game. If we can come out and execute like we did the second through sixth inning we’ll be tough to beat any given night. We swung it well and pitched it well,” Black Knights coach Jacob Willett mentioned.
The Black Knights recognized two seniors on senior night. Jake Hinkle and James Seidl played one final regular season game on their home field and they left the field with a pair of special performances. Seidl lifted off in the fifth inning for a solo home run. Hinkle reached base every at bat and went 2-for-2 with a walk, hit-by-pitch, and delivered three RBIs and three runs.
“Jake has been excellent. He’s done it all year. He’s our leadoff guy so if we’re getting three runs out of him it’s a good night. It’s been the same all year. He just gets on base and gets in. He’s a vital part to our lineup. They had a good night and I’m super proud of those guys for how they’ve played this year. Super proud of Jake and James they’ve both been excellent,” Coach Willett bragged.
While the seniors were recognized, freshman Kiptyn Ball started on the mound and delivered six full innings with only two hits, three strikeouts, and zero earned runs. Maybe the most impressive stat though was going through six innings on only 67 pitches.
“Kiptyn was very efficient on the mound. He finished under 70 pitches through six innings. That’s super efficient. Big game out of him,” Willett said.
North Greene only collected two base hits and they were both doubles courtesy of Isaac Gaby and Brady Malone. The Huskies lone senior, Jake Duffy, started on the rubber and received the loss.
Chuckey-Doak finishes their regular season at 14-11. North Greene falls to 12-11 with one final regular season game left to play.
The first inning consisted of each team driving in one run each. Duffy reached base on a throwing error by the Black Knights and scored on another error committed by Chuckey-Doak two batters later. In the bottom half, Jake Hinkle walked to lead off and scored on Gavin Crum’s single.
In the bottom of the third Chuckey-Doak added two more runs to take a 3-1 lead. Dom Atchison led off with a single, Hinkle was hit by a pitch, and Ball singled to load the bases. Cooper Seay drew a five-pitch walk to help Atchison score a run. Randall Sauceman hit safely into a fielder’s choice and scored Hinkle as all runners were safe.
Another pair of runs scored in the fifth inning to make the score 5-1. Ben Palazzo singled and Dom Atchison was hit by a pitch. Lynkin Cutshaw ran for Palazzo and scored on Jake Hinkle’s RBI-single. Ball’s RBI-double scored Atchison next.
The fifth inning was Chuckey-Doak’s best inning with five runs scored. It started with senior James Seidl’s solo home run over the left field fence.
“How special is that? That’s special. That’s big. It’s tough to have any better senior day than that. I remember I hit one on my senior day and that’s something I’ll never forget and I know he’ll feel the same way. It’s a special moment for him and I’m super happy for him,” Willett expressed.
Senior Jake Hinkle delivered a two-RBI single next to score Palazzo and Atchison from second and third. Ball hit a grounder and forced North Greene to make an error that helped Hinkle cross home plate in the next at bat. Seay mashed an RBI-double to left field to score Ball and finish the inning.
In the sixth inning Shane Cook doubled down the left-field line to score Gavin Crum and ended the game early before the potential storms arrived.
Chuckey-Doak defeated North Greene 11-1 in Lower Afton on the Black Knight’s senior night.
The Huskies finish their regular season at Carter on Monday at 6 p.m. Chuckey-Doak finished its regular season on Friday and look ahead into next week’s District 1-2A tournament. The Knights host their pod of the tournament starting on Wednesday. They will play the winner of South Greene and Hampton at 7 p.m.
