The supposed ‘quarterfinal hex? was broken last Tuesday as the Dragons advanced to Battle Creek by beating West Bloomfield 3-2 at Madison Heights Bishop Foley.
Lake Orion got clutch hits from the bottom of their lineup to score all three runs in the bottom of the fifth inning and erase a 2-0 deficit.
The two-out rally against West Bloomfield junior ace Drew Pyles began with a Mike Musary double and Ross Tonyan getting hit by a pitch.
After the pair advanced to second and third on a botched pickoff attempt, Brandon Riggsbee hit a single up the middle to score two runs. Riggsbee advanced all the way to third on an error by Lakers? centerfielder Eugene Vinogradov.
Two pitches later, Jake Gaudard smacked a double that scored Riggsbee and gave the Dragons all they would need to get to Battle Creek.
‘I just told them that those might be the two biggest at bats in the history of our program,? Coach Andy Schramek said afterwards.
Riggsbee’s at bat was particularly big, as he fouled off a half-dozen pitches in a row, with two strikes, before putting the ball in play.
‘He threw a couple of outside pitches and I fouled them off,? Riggsbee said. ‘I knew that if I got one inside and just put one up the middle, we’d get some runs.?
For Gaudard, who was solid behind the plate all season as the team’s catcher, getting the winning hit was a great feeling.
‘He didn’t have the start to the season that he wanted to at the plate, and we took a couple of at bats away from him during the season,? Schramek said.
But, as the seniors have all playoffs long, Gaudard stepped up at just the right time.
‘I couldn’t leave my team hanging out there with a guy at third and two outs,? he said.
Pyles had thrown just 35 pitches through four innings, facing the minimum number of batters before Musary’s hit.
Josh Deeg started the game for the Dragons and was relieved by Jon Ruggeri, who pitched the final 2 and 2/3 innings without allowing a hit.
The big defensive play came with one out in the top-half of the fifth inning, with one out and the bases loaded.
Ruggeri snared a chopper back to the mound with his bare hand and started a home to first double play to get out of the jam.
‘I don’t know why,? Ruggeri said of his decision to grab the ball with his throwing hand. ‘I just made the play. I didn’t really pay attention.?
‘We had a situation where we could have broken the game wide open,? West Bloomfield Coach Pat Watson said. ‘But Ruggeri made a great play. He barehanded the ball, threw home and the catcher made a great throw to first.?
West Bloomfield finished at 24-15, with three of their losses coming to Lake Orion, though this game was much closer than the previous two.