Highlands answers NewCath rally in 13-6 win

Now that the 36th District is in its second baseball season with district tournament seeding games, intensity has ratcheted up a notch between traditional rivals Highlands and Newport Central Catholic.

That was evident Wednesday as the Bluebirds pulled away from a 6-6 tie for an eventful 13-6 road win over the Thoroughbreds at Morscher Park.

There was an early 4-0 lead for the Bluebirds (12-8), a rally by the Thoroughbreds (7-13) that tied the score at 6 after five innings and a five-run seventh that finished off the hosts.

The contest produced 26 hits, seven errors and seven half-innings with two runs or more. That included a four-run fifth for the Thoroughbreds, who experienced something they haven't seen in 16 years. They had a pitcher ejected while he was pitching.

A hurler with some familiar baseball bloodlines earned the win after the Bluebirds survived NewCath's rally. Lou Bunning, grandson of politician and National Baseball Hall of Fame member Jim Bunning, relieved Highlands starter Joey Cochran and pitched 2 1/3 innings of two-hit ball to earn his fourth win, one-third the team total.

Cochran went 4 2/3, striking out five and allowing four earned runs before tiring. He hit a NewCath batter in the back in the fifth and was lifted in favor of Bunning during Highlands' third mound meeting of the inning.

The hit batsmen continued to fire up the noisy bench of the Thoroughbreds, who had already tied the score at 6, but Bunning got the Bluebirds out of the inning, and shut down the 'Breds rest of the way. "Probably the biggest game I've come in to pitch," the left-hander said. "Big seeding game. Big rivalry game."

Clint Bartels' ejection for arguing with the umpire in the sixth following a suicide squeeze play excited Highlands, which scored twice in the inning for an 8-6 lead and added five more in the seventh. "Haven't seen that since 1998," NewCath coach Jeff Schulkens said. "It happened to me once before. Coach Meyers' son was tossed his senior year."

Propelling the Bluebirds at the plate was Jake Whitford, who went 4-for-4 with a triple and five RBI, and Todd Ramey, who was 3-for-4 with two RBI. Kenny Ball drove in three runs. Brady Murray scored three. Like Bunning, they're all juniors.

They extended the 'Breds losing streak to six and dropped them to a precarious 0-2 in the district, with a loss to Bellevue already in the books.

For Highlands, ranked No. 5 in the Northern Kentucky coaches' poll, it was the district opener. They beat district mate Dayton 13-1 in five innings at Lloyd in last month's Little 5 Tournament.

PLAY OF THE GAME: The Bluebirds plated the go-ahead run in the sixth on Ball's suicide squeeze that scored Whitford from third. Bartels said something to the umpire. He was sent to the dugout and was relieved by freshman Spencer Pangallo, who was called in from second base and allowed all the time he needed to get ready. Pangallo allowed six hits and five runs after Bartels pitched 2 2/3 innings in relief of starter Grant Moeves, who went three.

PLAYER OF THE GAME: Whitford was in the middle of everything, but kept his cool when things got hot. "A fun game," he said. "It was getting a little crazy, but we stayed chill and kept hitting the ball and threw strikes."

VIEW FROM THE SIDELINE: "Our guys knew and their guys knew that this was going to be a battle, and we were fortunate enough to get a win," Highlands coach Jeremy Baioni said. "We hit, and I thought both Joey and Lou threw well. But we have to make plays for them. Joey's pitch count went up because we made (four) errors, and we had to pull him."

Said NewCath coach Jeff Schukens of the fateful turn of events following the suicide squeeze: "Our kids know to keep quiet and let me take care of it. But I like the fire in the kids. We've been lacking some fire."

QUOTABLE: "When you play 36 games a season, it's really hard for these guys to get in a win-or-go-home mentality until the districts," Highlands coach Baioni said. "This game now gives you something bigger to play for, and puts you in a one-and-done frame of mind, which I think is good for them."

Highlands 220 202 5 -- 13 - 15 - 4

NewCath 002 040 0 -- 6 - 11 - 3

WP: Bunning (4-1). LP: Bartels (1-2). Leaders: H-Whitford 4-4, 3B, 5 RBI; Ramey 3-4, 2 RBI; Gesenhues 2-4; Ball 3 RBI; Murray 2B. Records: H 12-8, N 7-13.