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06-07-2007 By ERIC AHLQVIST Editor That axiom rang true again Tuesday, as Liner's two-out, two-run double in the top of the seventh inning gave the Redskins a 3-2 lead, and a trip to the program's first ever state Final Four seemed all but assured. But Oxford, the number one seed in the state in Class C, mounted a rally of its own in the bottom of the inning to take a dramatic 4-3 victory. Oxford, 22-3, will play Saturday morning at 10 a.m. back at U-E, with the championship slated for 4 p.m. Cooperstown's season ends at 19- 4. Cooperstown junior Philip Pohl was the big story early, homering with two outs in the top of the first inning, and mowing down Oxford hitters on the mound. Pohl did not allow a hit until one out in the bottom of the fourth, when a line shot got over the head of centerfielder Brian Segit. Before that hit Pohl had struck out six straight batters and seven overall. Pohl allowed a two-out single later in the inning which tied the score at 1-1. Both teams loaded the bases in the fifth inning but failed to score. Leadoff man Luke Banner drew a two-out walk, and Frank Petroskey reached first after striking out on a ball that got away from the catcher. A passed ball moved runners to second and third, and Pohl was walked intentionally before Liner grounded out with the bases loaded. Oxford used two walks and an infield single to load the bases in the bottom of the inning, but Pohl recorded another strikeout on a curveball to end the threat. In the bottom of the sixth inning a tiring Pohl gave up two long doubles, one which hit midway up the leftfield fence, and Oxford grabbed a 2- 1 lead. That's when things got really interesting. With one out in the top of the seventh, Banner singled to right field. After Petroskey grounded out softly to third and Banner advanced to second, Pohl was walked intentionally for the second time in the game. Liner quickly fell behind in the count 0-2, but on a 1-2 pitch ripped a double down the line, past a diving third baseman, scoring both Banner and Pohl and causing an eruption of celebration among the Cooperstown team and its fans. "Kyle is very mature for his age and he didn't let the situation get to him," Miosek said. "I wasn't going to let Pohl beat us," said Oxford head coach Chris Palmer. "Liner's a freshman and I wouldn't have regretted the move even if we had lost." The party didn't last long, as Pohl, on his 100th pitch of the afternoon, allowed a leadoff single to start the bottom of the seventh. Although he protested, Miosek brought in Banner in relief. It was the first time in five sectional games this spring Miosek had to make a pitching change, as the first four games were all complete game victories. "Philip has a bright baseball future and I wasn't going to let him overextend himself," Miosek said. "You could see he was tiring and running out of gas. Of course, he wanted to stay in there, he'd pitch on one leg if you let him." The first Oxford batter welcomed Banner with a long double to left field, putting runners on secoind and third with no outs. Banner battled back to strike out the next hitter, but winning pitcher Steve Locke singled to right field, plating both runs and stunning the Redskins. "Steve hit .550 this year, and he loves the big situation," said Palmer. "I've got nine seniors on this team and I told them before we came to bat in the seventh that if you don't believe you're going to win this game, you might as well not be playing. They could have given up, but this group doesn't have any quit." Locke pitched a complete game, striking out eight and allowing four hits. Palmer said this is Oxford's first trip to the state tournament, as their last sectional title came in 1981, before the state tournament began. "These guys were undefeated as eighth graders and ninth graders," Palmer said. "We started talking then about making it to states and possibly winning. At this time of year, it's really about who gets the breaks and takes advantage of opportunities." Palmer added he was impressed with the way Cooperstown handled the loss. "Their kids were very impressive," Palmer said. "I was impressed with the way they congratulated us and showed great sportsmanship and class." Miosek said even though his team lost, the postseason is something he and his players will always remember. "We gave the fans their money's worth, that was a great game," he said. "We have a good team coming back and maybe we'll be here again next year. But if not, these guys got an experience of a lifetime." The Redskins advanced to state competition with an 8-0 victory over Fabius-Pompey last Thursday at DeLutis Field in Rome. Pohl pitched a two-hitter and struck out eight in a complete game, the fourth straight complete game for Cooperstown in four sectional wins, including two by Pohl. Leading 1-0 after Zack Sittler's second inning RBI single, senior shortstop Frank Petroskey hit the first of two triples to deep right field, scoring Luke Banner all the way from first base. Pohl hit a sacrifice fly to score Petroskey and give himself more than enough cushion as Cooperstown recorded the second Section Three Class C title in school history. The first was in 1999, also at DeLutis Field, and the Redskins went on to lose a state quarterfinal contest to Trumansburg. Pompey's best scoring chance came in the first inning, when they put runners on first and second with one out on a walk and a single. But first baseman Sean Gates made a bare-handed play on a bad-hop grounder and started a double play to end the inning. "If Sean doesn't make that play, they would have had the lead and the momentum," Miosek said. Starters Gates, Petroskey, Banner, Sittler, Segit and Tyler Combs will all be lost to graduation. Pohl, freshman standouts Liner and Mac Curran, and southpaw pitcher Jim Fort will be the top returnees next season. Curran and Liner can both pitch as well, and should help make up for the loss of Banner, Miosek said. |
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