Neoga Wins First-Ever Sectional Championship

Neoga High School's baseball team wins first-ever sectional championship.

Thanks to Dustin White for this game story. GS  

TEUTOPOLIS — A walk-off base hit from freshman Drew Ramert helped make Neoga High School baseball history Saturday as the Indians brought home the program’s first-ever sectional championship, defeating Edwards County (Albion) 4-3 in eight innings for the title of the Class 1A St. Anthony Sectional.

Ramert’s bases-loaded, one-out single in the bottom of the eighth made a winner out of senior starter Trevor Moore in a game moved to Teutopolis High School because overnight rain rendered the diamond at Evergreen Hollow Park unplayable. Moore threw all eight innings, while a 3-for-3 day at the plate from Jordan Hoedebecke, a 2-for-4 day for Matt Kingery, and solid all-around defense, particularly from outfielders Kingery, Ramert, and Sawyer James, factored heavily into the Neoga victory.

In the deciding home half of the eighth, Kingery led off with a line-drive double to left; an intentional walk of Zack Monroe was followed by a first-pitch fly-out to center from freshman cleanup hitter Caleb Hill. A successful bit of strategy followed as 14th-year Neoga coach Ted Kerner called for a hit-and-run with Guy Walk at the plate; Walk grounded slowly to second base and the fielder, realizing he couldn’t make a force play at second base, hurriedly misplayed the grounder to leave the bags packed for Ramert.

With the infield forced to play on the grass, Ramert grounded a 2-0 pitch sharply under the glove of Edwards County shortstop Bobby Brake to bring home Kingery, break the 3-3 deadlock, and send the Indians on their maiden voyage to super-sectionals.

Edwards County struck first in this game; Tylor Etheridge led off the game with an infield hit to deep short and was quickly sacrificed to second. After Keenan Boewe, who started on the mound for the Lions, was hit by an 0-2 curveball, cleanup man Cherokee Metcalf made the most of another 0-2 pitch with a soft RBI single over shortstop to make it 1-0. Moore avoided more trouble, though, as his defense provided an 8-6-5 double play on a fly ball to Kingery in center field. A perfect relay from Hoedebecke to Hill cut down Boewe as he tried to take an extra base on a ball hit to medium-depth center field and ended the inning.

Moore retired Edwards County in order for the next three innings, and Neoga tied it up 1-1 in the home half of the third when Hoedebecke led off with a double over the left fielder’s head. Lee Nees bunted him to third and Kingery chased him home an out later as he beat out a soft grounder to the left side for an RBI infield hit. 

In the fifth, the Indians snagged their first lead at 2-1 and again it was Hoedebecke in the No. 8 hole getting things going. He laced a one-out double to left and remained at second base when Moore came to hit with two down. On a full count, Moore went with a pitch for a clean single to right and good piece of hitting brought Hoedebecke home for his second run of the afternoon.

Edwards County struck back quickly, though, as Matt Stevenson led off the top of the sixth with a double of his own and scored when Boewe sent an 0-1 curveball over the left field fence to make it 3-2 Lions despite a valiant attempt by Ramert to climb the wall and bring it back. Moore settled right back in, however, and kept the deficit at a single run for what ended up being an important bottom of the sixth.

Monroe got that frame started with a sharp single lined to center, signaling the end of the day on the mound for Boewe as Stevenson, a hard-throwing lefty, came in from left field to try and put out the fire. He induced a slow chop to first base off the bat of Hill, getting the inning’s first out but allowing Monroe to take second. That’s when things got interesting, as Guy Walk hit a 1-1 pitch back to the mound and Monroe found himself in no-man’s land between second and third base.

Despite having Monroe right where he wanted him for a rundown, Stevenson gave him a quick look and fired to first for the second out. Monroe then lit out for third base and was probably going to be safe even if Parks’ throw from first base had been on line. It wasn’t, however, skipping past Eli Mosson and giving Monroe ample time to scamper home with the run to tie things up at 3-3.

In the top of the eighth, Boewe was again hit by a pitch to lead off the inning. He was quickly erased when Metcalf bounced sharply into a 6-4-3 double play. Hoedebecke handled a tricky hop to start the play and Monroe made the turn flawlessly. A single and a walk followed, but Moore struck out Maverick Troyer to end what turned out to be Edwards County’s final threat of the morning.

Moore struck out five and walked just two in his eight innings of work; he scattered a half-dozen hits and allowed three runs. Stevenson took the loss in 2 1/3 innings of relief; he surrendered one run on three hits with a walk and no strikeouts. Boewe allowed 3 runs (2 earned) on six hits in his five innings of work, fanning four without walking a man. 

Neoga advances to the Class 1A Carbondale Super-Sectional Monday at Southern Illinois University; it’s scheduled to play either Cobden or Century (Ullin) at 3 p.m. with a berth in next weekend’s state tournament in Peoria on the line. The Cobden/Century matchup is for the championship of the Webber Township (Bluford) Sectional; it was moved to SIUC because of wet conditions in Bluford. The Indians improve to 21-7 on the year, while Edwards County, playing in its fifth sectional in eight years, ends the season at 19-8.

Edwards County 100 002 00 — 3-6-2

Neoga 001 011 01 — 4-9-1

Boeke, Stevenson (6) and Smerdon; Moore and Yurs

WP - Trevor Moore

LP - Matt Stevenson

Edwards County - Tylor Etheridge, 1-for-3, run, walk, stolen base; Matt Stevenson, 1-for-3, double, run; Keenan Boewe, 1-for-2, home run, 2 RBI, 2 HBP; Cherokee Metcalf, 1-for-4, RBI; Eli Mosson, 2-for-4; Johnny Duncan, 0-for-3, walk; Trent Thompson, 0-for-1, sacrifice bunt; T.J. Smerdon, 1-for-3

Neoga - Trevor Moore, 1-for-4, RBI; Matt Kingery, 2-for-4, double, RBI, run; Zack Monroe, 1-for-3, walk, run; Caleb Hill, 1-for-4, double; Drew Ramert, 1-for-4, single, RBI; Jordan Hoedebecke, 3-for-3, 2 doubles, 2 runs; Lee Nees, 2 sacrifice bunts