Monday, 7-07-2008  -  81 degrees, American Legion at Teagle Field, CROWN POINT, IN

WP - Mike Schroeder (3-3)  7K, 9 walks (5.7 innings)
SOP - Bill Anderson (CP) 0K, 0 walksd (1.3 innings)
LP - Derek Brandenburg (3-2) 3K, 1 walk, 8 unearned runs (4 innings)

LOWELL-101 (4-6)  starters
Micah Raebel (P) 0-for-4, walk
James Frasure (LF) 1-for-3, HR, walk
Kale Popp (RF) 0-for-2
Tony Celebucki (CF) 0-for-3, walk
Derek Brandenburg (2B) 0-for-3, walk
Craig Austgen (SS) 0-for-1, 2 walks, sac bunt
Nick Bolda (P) 1-for-4,
Matt Milcarek (1B) 2-for-4, double, 2 RBIs
Justin Bolda (2B) 1-for-3, walk

CROWN POINT 20-B (6-10)
Tyler Ochi (SS) 2-for-4, walk, 2 RBIs
Colin Casey (C) 1-for-3, double, sac bunt, walk, RBI
Mike Schroeder (DH-P) 3-for-5, double, 2 runs scored
Specner Rapchak (1B) 0-for-2
Steve Lowe (3B) 1-for-4
Corbin Bish (RF) 2-for-4, double, 3 RBIs
Eli Kvachkoff (LF) 1-for-3, triple, walk, 2 RBIs, 2 runs scored
Casey Rapchak (2B) 0-for-3, walk
Jon Waspi (CF) 2-for-3, sac bunt, RBI


CROWN POINT American Legion Sectional
Double-elimination (19 and under) at Teagle Field - Crown Point  - July 21-26

7-21 (Mon) LOWELL-101 vs. Hobart-54 - 5:30 p.m.
7-22 (Tues) Hammond-168 vs. CROWN POINT-20 - 5:30 p.m.
7-23 (Wed) Winner's bracket game - 5:30 p.m.
7-24 (Thurs) Loser's bracket game - 5:30 p.m.
7-25 (Fri) Loser's bracket championship (Wed loser vs. Thurs. winner)  5:30 p.m.
7-26 (Sat) Championship game one - 3 p.m.
7-26 (Sat) Championship game two (if necessary) - 30 minutes after game one

Click Here for 2008 Crown Point Post 20 Schedule

CROWN POINT (7-07-2008) - All baseball games should be nine innings.  Nine players, three outs.  Three times.  Everything in baseball is a variation of the number three. That's the way the game was designed.  Then again, sometimes, seven innings is too long.

For five innings Monday night, it appeared as if Lowell Post 101 was going to return after a seven-day layoff with a road win at Crown Point, albeit over CP Post 20's 'B' team, the 17-and-under squad.  But a half hour after Post 101 took the field in the bottom of the sixth inning with a 5-3 lead, they returned to the dugout seven runs behind.  Baseball's version of the roof fell in on Lowell Monday night in a 12-6 loss at Teagle Field.

"Our defense was not good, obviously" admitted manager Steve Harker of the 15-batter Crown Point sixth inning.  "We had chances to get out of the inning, but one error led to another. We couldn't field the ball."

"This was a team that beat us by 10 runs the first time we played them," said CP 20-B manager Marty Zurbriggen.  "We had some good at bats in the sixth inning."

Lowell led 5-3 when CP's Casey Rapchak walked on a 3-2 pitch and Jon Waspi laid down a well-placed bunt single against Lowell high senior Derek Brandenburg.  Tyler Ochi lined a 2-2 pitch into right field for an RBI hit and when Lowell right fielder Micah Raebel threw the ball past third base, the tying run scored.  One out later, with runners at first and second, CP's Jordan Fall hit a routine ground ball to third baseman Nick Bolda.  But Bolda's throw to first pulled teammate Matt Milcarek off the bag and the bases were loaded with one out.

Brandenburg struck out CP's Steve Lowe for the second out but left-handed hitting Corbin Bish drove a line drive three-run double to the center field fence, boosting the Post 20 lead to 9-5 one batter after the inning should have been over.

"I went out there," said Harker, "to get on them when the bases were loaded.  Derek strikes out the next guy.  But we just couldn't make any plays after that."

To be fair to Lowell, Post 101 was coming off a seven day layoff.  Because Harker and assistant coach John Becker are high school teachers, they cannot participate in game competition with high school athletes during the one-week high school 'moratorium' period every July.  Post 101 did not schedule any games during that time.  But the return to the field on an 85-degree high humidity Monday night got ugly late in the game.

"We haven't played in a week and that showed," said Harker.  "We've got a lot of games this week.  We'll be okay."

LEGION NOTES:  Lowell played without Kankakee Valley's Tom Cooper, who had been their cleanup hitter earlier in the season.

"I'm not sure where he is," said Lowell manager Steve Harker, who said that Cooper is not off the team or out of the lineup for any reason.  "We're trying to find out what's going on with him."

This was Post 20's final B-team home game.  There is no sectional tournament at the 17-and-under level, but the regional is a double-elimination, four-team competition the weekend of July 18-20 at Bristol Post 143 in Elkhart.  Bristol, CP, Mishawaka and Hammond Post 168 will play for the right to go to the B-team state finals the weekend of July 25-27.

Monday's game was a big moment for James Frasure, the Crown Point high school graduate who plays for Lowell.  Frasure hit a long home run to left field in the first inning.  The ball hit one of the light standards at Teagle Field.  Frasure was allowed to play for Lowell because Post 20 manager Larry Samano did not feel Frasure would get much playing time with CP.

Harker is happy with the draw in the Crown Point Sectional this month.  Powers Hammond Post 168 and Crown Point Post 20 drew each other in the first round on July 22 after Lowell opens the sectional with Hobart Monday, July 21 at 5:30 p.m.

"If we win that one," Harker suggested, "we'd get the winner (of Hammond-CP) the next night.  And if we could win that one, we'd be able to set up our pitching because we'd be off until Saturday.  That's the best draw we could have gotten."

2008 Lowell Post 101 (4-5)
American Legion 1st District at Lowell high school
6-3 (W)  10-0 (5 innings) CROWN POINT (B)
6-4 (Postponed) East Chicago (269) 
6-8   (L) 6-8 at CEDAR LAKE Post 261
6-10 (L) 8-12 Hammond (168-B) .
6-13 (L) 0-10 at Hammond (168) .
6-17 (L) 0-4 CROWN POINT (20)
6-20 (W) 5-3 Whiting Post (80)

6-22 (W) 10-1 Cedar Lake (261) .
6-24 (W) 6-1 Highland (180)  .
6-25 (wet grounds) at Valparaiso (94) .
6-29 (L) 4-5 at CROWN POINT (20)
7-7 (L) 6-12 at CROWN POINT (20-B)

7-8 (Tu) Valparaiso (94) 6 p.m.
7-9 (W) at Hobart (54) 6 p.m.
7-10 (Th) Hobart (54) 6 p.m.
7-12 (Sat) East Chicago (369) 2 games - 3 p.m.
7-14 (M) at Highland (180)  6 p.m.
7-15 (Tu) at Whiting (80) 6 p.m.

Crown Point (20) Sectional
Double-elimination at Teagle Field with Hobart (54), Hammond (168), Lowell (101), and CP (20) 
7-24 (Th) 2 first round games - 5 p.m.
7-26 (Sat) 3 games: 1st round winners, losers and 3rd round elimination
7-27 (Sun) Championship round - 12 noon

Plymouth (27) Regional
Double-elimination at Bill Nixon Field with sectional winners from CP, East Chicago, Valpo and Plymouth
8-1 (F) 2 first round games  - 5 p.m.
8-2 (Sat) 3 games: 1st round winners, losers and 3rd round elimination
8-3 (Sun) Championship round - 12 noon

2008 American Legion State Finals
4 teams - double-elimination at Bill Nixon Field - Plymouth
8-8 (F) 1st round games (TBA)
8-9 (Sat) 1st round winners, losers and 3rd round elimination
8-10 (Sun) Championship round

CROWN POINT-20 A (8-9)
Manager Larry Samano  - 2nd year
6-3 (L) 2-7 Highland-180
6-6 (W) 3-1 Hobart-54
6-10 (W) 3-1 Kouts-301
6-11 (W) 22-0 (5-innings) at East Chicago-369
6-12 (L) 1-12 (5-innings) at Hammond-168
6-13 (Fri) at Whiting-80
6-14 (L) 4-6 at Cedar Lake-261
6-17 (W) 4-0 at Lowell-101

Terre Haute Invitational
6-19 (L) 0-6 Terre Haute (346)
6-20 (L) 1-11 Bristol (143)
6-21 (L) 2-5 Lafayette (11)
6-22 (W) 3-2 Evansville (246)
6-22 (L) 0-11 Bristol (143) 3rd place

6-23 (L) CP-20-B 6,  CP-20-A 2
6-25 (wet grounds) Plymouth-27
6-27 (W) 11-5 Hobart-54
6-28 (L)  1-12 (5 innings) Osceola-308
6-28 (W) 16-10 Osceola-308

6-29 (W) 5-4 Lowell-101
6-30 (M) East Chicago-369 - 5:30 p.m.
7-2 (W) Kouts-301 - 8:00 p.m.
7-3 (Th) at Highland-180 - 6:00 p.m.

7-6 (Sun) Angola-423 - 1 p.m. (2 games)
7-8 (Tu) Hammond-168 - 6:00 p.m.
7-10 (Th) Cedar Lake-261 - 6:00 p.m.
7-11 (F) Whiting-80 - 8:00 p.m.
7-12 (Sat) at Lafayette-11 - 1:00 p.m. (2 games)
7-14 (M) at Hammond-168-B - 6:00 p.m.
7-16 (W) at Plymouth-27 - 6:00 p.m.
7-19 (Sat) Kokomo-6 - 11:00 a.m. (2 games)

Crown Point (20) Sectional
with Cedar Lake (261), Hammond (168), Lowell (101) double-elimination at Teagle Field
7-23 (W) CP Sectional - TBA
7-24 (Th) CP Sectional - TBA
7-25 (F) CP Sectional - TBA
7-26 (Sat) CP Sectional - TBA

Plymouth (27) Regional
4 teams - double-elimination at Bill Nixon Field - Plymouth
8-1 (F) 1st round games (TBA)
8-2 (Sat) three 2nd round games (TBA)
8-3 (Sun) Championship round

2008 American Legion State Finals
4 teams - double-elimination at Bill Nixon Field - Plymouth
8-8 (F) 1st round games (TBA)
8-9 (Sat) three 2nd round games (TBA)
8-10 (Sun) Championship round