Baseball Enters Packed Final Week With Shot At ECC Crown

SETTING THE SCENE: A jam packed final week of the regular season that features six games and could end with a share of the Eastern Cincinnati Conference Championship faces the Milford High School baseball team beginning on Monday. The Eagles begin the week with a 13-6 overall record and are 9-3 inside the ECC. With a pair of victories against Withrow and at least a West Clermont split with Loveland, the Eagles will earn a piece of their fifth ECC title. The week also features home games against Western Brown and Clinton-Massie and will conclude with challenging non-conference match-up against Highland and Mason.

THE UPCOMING DOCKET: A look at Milford’s schedule for the upcoming week:

• Monday, April 30 at Withrow, 5:00 p.m. & Wednesday, May 2 vs. Withrow, 5:00 p.m.
  • 2018 Record: 0-14, 0-11 ECC (NR Division I area coaches’ weekly poll)
  • Top Hitter: Senior Keyandrey Davis (.385/3 XBH/5 RBI/11 SB)
  • Top Pitcher: Senior Keyandrey Davis (7.33 ERA/0-4 record)
  • Last Meeting: 2017; Milford 16, Withrow 2 & Milford 11, Withrow 1
• Tuesday, May 1 vs. Western Brown, 5:00 p.m.
  • 2018 Record: 6-7, 3-4 SBAC (NR Division I area coaches’ weekly poll)
  • Top Hitter: N/A
  • Top Pitcher: N/A
  • Last Meeting: 2012; Western Brown 5, Milford 1
• Thursday, May 3 vs. Clinton-Massie High School, 5:00 p.m.
  • 2018 Record: 7-7, 4-3 SBAC (NR Division I area coaches’ weekly poll)
  • Top Hitter: N/A
  • Top Pitcher: N/A
  • Last Meeting: 2012; Milford 5, Clinton-Massie 1
• Friday, May 4 at Highlands, 5:00 p.m.
  • 2018 Record: 9-7 (1^st Kentucky area coaches’ weekly poll)
  • Top Hitter: N/A
  • Top Pitcher: N/A
  • Last Meeting: 2007; Highlands 9, Milford 8
• Saturday, May 5 at Mason {at Mason Middle School}, 12:30 p.m.
  • 2018 Record: 16-4, 13-2 GMC (1^st Division I area coaches’ weekly poll)
  • Top Hitter: Junior Joe Powell (.438/5 XBH/15 RBI/5 SB)
  • Top Pitcher: Senior Will Pfennig (0.23 ERA/4-0 record)
  • Last Meeting: 2015; Mason 4, Milford 3

TOURNEY TALK: The Eagles have earned the No. 7 seed in the Cincinnati sectionals of the OHSAA Tournament, as voted on by the area coaches. The Eagles will open the tournament at home on Tuesday, May 8, hosting No. 33 and ECC rival Withrow. Should the Eagles advance, they will take on the winner of No. 11 West Clermont and No. 31 Western Hills. Click here for Milford’s sectional bracket.

THANK YOU SENIORS: Senior Day is scheduled in conjunction with the Eagles’ May 2 home game against Withrow. That day, the 2018 Senior Class consisting of Tyler Barter, Evan Baugh, Jared Dettmer, Owen Elsbernd, Alex Lutz, Dan Lutz, Mitch Mierke, Sam Mills, Kyle Minton and Dylan Stewart will be honored for their contributions to Milford Baseball.

A LOOK BACK: April 25 at Kings: Kings 6, Milford 5

GAME REWIND

Kings’ Hunter Jessee broke the hearts of the Eagles with a seventh-inning walk-off three-run homer, sending the Knights to a 6-5 victory. The two teams played to a 3-3 tie after three innings before Milford broke the score with two runs in the fifth on a Kyle Minton RBI double and a run-scoring hit by Anthony Bassano. But in the seventh, Kings worked walks to the first two hitters of the inning, setting the stage for the heroic blast by Jessee.

RECORDS & PITCHING DECISIONS

Milford: 10-6, 7-3 ECC; Kings: 14-6, 6-4 ECC

WP: Brett Souder; LP: Kyle Minton; Save: None

KEY PLAYERS

Milford

Mitch Mierke 2-4

Calvin Hunter 3-4, 2B, SB

Kyle Minton 2B, 2 RBI

Anthony Bassano 2-3, 2B, 2 RBI

Kings

Hunter Jessee HR, 3 RBI

Tyler Gambill 3B

Gavin McGaughey 2-3, 2B

April 26 at Walnut Hills: Milford 5, Walnut Hills 2

GAME REWIND

Milford pushed across the deciding runs with a four-run sixth inning, outlasting Walnut Hills by a 5-2 score. MHS struck first with a second inning run, but Walnut bounced back with two in the fourth to take its first lead. In the deciding frame, Milford benefited from a pair of errors, with Calvin Hunter and Kyle Minton also picking up RBI in the inning. Hunter Johnson came out of the Milford bullpen to turn in three dazzling innings to pick up the relief win.

RECORDS & PITCHING DECISIONS

Milford: 11-6, 8-3 ECC; Walnut Hills: 8-11, 4-7 ECC

WP: Hunter Johnson; LP: Sid Patel; Save: None

KEY PLAYERS

Milford

Hunter Johnson 3 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 6 SO

Dylan Stewart 2-3

Mitch Mierke 2B

Brady Sluder 2-3

Walnut Hills

None

April 27 at Milford: Milford 8, Kings 5

GAME REWIND

Milford earned a measure of retribution for its heartbreaking loss earlier in the week to Kings, knocking off the Knights by an 8-5 score. The Eagles were keyed early by strong starting pitching from senior Mitch Mierke and a two-run home run by junior Hunter Johnson. They put the game on ice with a four-run fifth inning keyed by RBI by Anthony Bassano and Cade Riesenberg.

RECORDS & PITCHING DECISIONS

Milford: 12-6, 9-3 ECC; Kings: 15-7, 7-5 ECC

WP: Mitch Mierke; LP: Joey Gallagher; Save: None

KEY PLAYERS

Milford

Mitch Mierke 4 IP, 1 R, 6 SO; 3-4, 2B

Anthony Bassano 2-3, 3 R

Dan Lutz 2-3

Hunter Johnson HR, 2 RBI

Kings

Hunter Jessee 2-3, 2 2B

Evan Wheeler HR, 3 RBI

Ian Mustard 2B

Brenten Baker 3-4, 2B

April 28 at Centerville: Milford 6, Centerville 4 (9 innings)

GAME REWIND

The day before the OHSAA Tournament draw, the Eagles picked up a quality road win with a 6-4, nine-inning triumph at Centerville. The senior duo of Alex Lutz, Jared Dettmer and Owen Eslbernd combined for the win on the mound. Down to their last out in the top of the seventh, the Eagles took advantage of a Centerville error to tie the game, then went ahead with ninth inning RBI singles by Calvin Hunter and Brady Sluder.

RECORDS & PITCHING DECISIONS

Milford: 13-6; Centerville: 10-8

WP: Owen Elsdernd; LP: Drew Smith; Save: None

KEY PLAYERS

Milford

Owen Elsbernd 2 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 BB

Calvin Hunter 2-4, 2B

Brady Sluder 2-5

Kyle Minton 3-4, 2B

Cameron Hemmert 2B

Centerville

Thomas Jenkins 2-2, 2 RBI

Riley Poulton 2-2

Drew Smith 2B

INSIDE THE NUMBERS: A look at Milford’s statistical leaders (through games of April 26):

Batting Average: Mitch Mierke (.383), Calvin Hunter (.375), Dylan Stewart (.333)

Slugging Percentage: Calvin Hunter/Brady Sluder (.500), Mitch Mierke (.483)

On Base Percentage: Mitch Mierke/Dylan Stewart (.433), Kyle Minton (.411)

Runs Scored: Kyle Minton/Dylan Stewart (20), Mitch Mierke/Brady Sluder (12)

Hits: Mitch Mierke (23), Dylan Stewart (19), Calvin Hunter/Brady Sluder (15)

RBI: Brady Sluder (15), Anthony Bassano/Mitch Mierke (14)

Doubles: Mitch Mierke (6), Kyle Minton (5), Dylan Stewart (4)

Triples: Brady Sluder (3)

Home Runs: Anthony Bassano/Calvin Hunter (1)

Walks: Dylan Stewart (9), Brady Sluder (8), Kyle Minton/Grant Whitaker (7)

Stolen Bases: Dylan Stewart (9), Kyle Minton (4), Calvin Hunter/Mitch Mierke (3)

Wins: Zach Byron (3), Three Tied (2)

Saves: Kyle Minton (3), Tyler Barter (1)

ERA: Zach Byron (1.27), Calvin Hunter (1.75), Hunter Johnson (1.91)

Innings: Zach Byron (22.0), Calvin Hunter (16.0), Evan Baugh (15.2)

Opponents Batting Average: Calvin Hunter (.148), Zach Byron (.211), Hunter Johnson (.250)

Strikeouts: Zach Byron (26), Calvin Hunter (20), Evan Baugh (14)

INSIDE THE ECC: Three squads remain within one game of each other as the ECC regular season enters its final week. Loveland holds the advantage as the Tigers are 10-2, with both losses coming against Milford. The Eagles enter just one game back in a tie with West Clermont, each at 9-3. The schedule for ECC conference games this week includes: Monday-Withrow at Milford, Loveland at West Clermont, Walnut Hills at Kings and Turpin at Anderson; Wednesday-Withrow at Milford, Kings at Walnut Hills, West Clermont at Loveland and Anderson at Turpin; Thursday-Turpin at Withrow.

The schedule for ECC teams in the tournament includes: No. 7 Milford vs. No. 33 Withrow (May 8, 5:00 p.m. at Milford), No. 8 Loveland vs. No. 12 LaSalle (May 8, 5:00 p.m. at Loveland), No. 11 West Clermont vs. No. 31 Western Hills (May 8, 5:00 p.m. at West Clermont), No. 13 Kings vs. No. 30 Western Brown (May 8, 5:00 p.m. at Kings), No. 17 Anderson vs. No. 28 Middletown (May 8, 5:00 p.m. at Anderson), No. 21 Walnut Hills vs. No. 27 Northwest (May 8, 5:00 p.m. at Walnut Hills) and No. 23 Turpin vs. No. 19 Edgewood (May 8, 5:00 p.m. at Edgewood).

POLL WATCH: Milford took the No. 7 position in the final Cincinnati Enquirer Division I area coaches’ poll. Mason was crowned the regular season poll champions, earning all 18 first place votes. The balance of the top-five was comprised of Lakota East, Moeller, Elder and Badin. The ECC is also represented by Loveland in ninth and West Clermont in 10^th, with Kings among those also receiving votes. The final poll can be viewed at preps.cincinnati.com/coachespolls.

COLLEGE BOUND EAGLES: Four seniors on the 2018 Eagles’ roster have already announced their intention to continue their athletic and academic careers on the collegiate level. Twin brothers Alex and Dan Lutz are headed to Thiel College, while Mitch Mierke will take his talents to Thomas More College and Dylan Stewart has committed to Fort Wayne University.