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Ethan Osterholt threw a complete game shutout against St. Marys Monday night.
MARIA STEIN - It was a blue and gold battle at the Airport between Marion Local and St. Marys, and the Flyers used a complete game gem from pitcher Ethan Osterholt to take down the Roughriders 6-0 in a late season cross-conference clash.
Osterholt gave up just two hits and had four strikeouts. He did not allowed a baserunner until the fifth inning, and needed just 68 pitches to get through all seven innings.
"He did a really nice job, and he always does," said Marion coach Mitch Hays of his pitcher. "He throws strikes and changes speeds well. He did his work, hit his spots and did what we needed him to do."
The senior also helped his own cause to get the scoring started in the first inning. After Isaac Moeller led off with a walk and worked his way to second on a bunt, Osterholt dumped a ball into left field to get the Flyers on the board.
It was up to Osterholt again in the third to double the lead. Moeller got the inning started by reaching on an error, and the junior stole second to get in scoring position.
With one away, Osterholt worked the count even at 2-2, then smacked a pitch from Riders (12-7) starter Owen Green down the right field line. Moeller came in to score easily, while Osterholt cruised into second with a double.
Later that inning Derek Knapke used a long at bat to push his pitcher across on a double that just missed the glove of a diving Aiden Meinerding in left field. With the score at 3-0, Marion had some room to breathe.
St. Marys' Reese Howell, right, throws toward first to get Marion Local's Trey Brookhart out.
With Jackson Green summoned to the hill for St. Marys, the Flyers used some timely hits to extend their lead. A full-count walk from Trey Brookhart meant another leadoff runner was on, but a big strikeout looked to limit the damage.
That's when Seth Heitkamp picked up his first and only hit of the game. His one-out single to centerfield brought Brookhart home to give Marion a 5-0 lead, but Green rallied on the mound to limit the damage for St. Marys.
The visitors defense did not help matters in the sixth. A dropped third strike allowed Kamden Eifert to reach first, while a bunt from Andrew Schmackers toward the mound was thrown past first base to bring Eifert in to score.
Schmackers was caught in a rundown for out number two, but an error by shortstop Dyllan Fink extended the frame. It brought Brookhart up with two-away, and the senior's swing carried a ball to left field, but was a bit too much for Meinerding, who could not reel it in for the sixth Marion run.
To wrap up the bizarre inning, Osterholt was called for batters interference on a steal attempt to end the frame. St. Marys ended the inning with four errors, and finished with five for the game.
Marion Local's Landyn Minton (11) fields a groundball against St. Marys.
"I'd rather win games with nobody making an error, but it happens," said Hays, whose team improved to 10-10 with the win. "My main focus is we have to continue minimizing our errors and we did a good job of that tonight."
The Riders could only muster one hit in the seventh and Osterholt ended the game with a strikeout.
"Today was one of those days where the pitcher was around the plate, and we did not do a good job of adjusting," St. Marys coach Adam Graves said. "We had a lot of easy pop-ups or strikeouts in situations. Fly balls are easy to catch, so you have to put the ball on the ground and make them field the ball at least. We made it easy."
Marion will have little time to think as the team welcomes Russia tonight, with first pitch scheduled for 5 p.m. For St. Marys, their next game requires a quick road trip to Fort Recovery in a matchup with the Indians tonight at 5 p.m.
