After fighting its way through the NJCAA Region 12 Tournament, the Sinclair Pride fell one game short.On Sunday, May 10, the No. 3 seeded Pride lost, 10-4, to host Kellogg Community College in the Region 12 Championship game in Battle Creek, Mich.
“Against Kellogg, we had nothing to lose,” Sinclair coach Steve Dintaman said.
Freshman Dylan Bradenberg started for the Pride and gave up six earned over three and two-thirds.
Kellogg’s Eric Wrozek proved to be a tough out as the shortstop went 3-for-3, scoring twice and knocking in four RBIs.
“Everyone tried to give us innings, but it came down to not having enough depth on the mound,” Dintaman said.
The Pride averaged more than 11 hits and eight runs during its Region 12 run, but the offense was held to seven hits and four runs against Kellogg.
The road taken…
“When we got there, we were as confident as we could be,” Dintaman said of the teams trip north. The Pride entered the regional on a 10-game winning streak and had just swept their way through the OCCAC Conference Championship.
Sinclair faced Muskegon Community College in its opening round matchup on Friday, May 8, and cruised to a 9-5 victory behind a complete game by sophomore pitcher Billy Kitchen.
“He didn’t have his best stuff, but he competed,” Dintaman said of Kitchen.
The right-hander allowed five earned and struck out seven. Outfielder Jacob Robinson led the efficient Pride offense with three RBIs.
In game two, Kellogg gave Sinclair its first loss of the double-elimination tournament in a 14-4 beating. Dintaman pinpointed the loss to the lack of control his pitchers displayed. The Pride walked 13 batters behind three errors.
“The pitchers just didn’t throw strikes,” he said. “It was tough for a lot of people to swallow, pitching coach (Ryan Hill) included.”
After the loss, the Pride was sent to the loser’s bracket and was matched with Macomb Community College. Sinclair jumped out to an early 7-1 lead thanks to a three-hit performance by outfielder Clay Ragland. Macomb came back by scoring five runs in the final three innings, but the Pride hung on thanks to freshman pitcher Jordan Russell’s ninth save.
Sinclair breezed by 2008 Region 12 champions Grand Rapids Community College in the loser’s semifinal with a 16-9 spanking. The Pride scored seven runs in the first inning and never looked back with freshman Jacob Robinson leading the way with four hits (two HRs), three runs and five RBIs.
Sophomore captain Kyle Hopwood pitched four scoreless innings to calm the Grand Rapid bats as the Pride moved on to the loser’s final against Vincennes.
“(Hopwood) controlled the game for us,” Dintaman said. “His performance was huge. I couldn’t be more happy for anyone to go up there and pitch the way he did.”
Robinson started against Vincennes and pitched the game of the year, according to Dintaman.
“We came out and battled and competed,” he said.
Russell wrapped up his 10th save to set a new school record as the Pride advanced to its first Region 12 Championship game.
Sophomore leadership was vital
Dintaman said he couldn’t ask for better leadership out of his sophomore class.
“I hope to stay in contact with most of them because I think we’ve established a good relationship,” Dintaman said. “It was a family atmosphere all weekend and all year.”
Dintaman acknowledged the difficult end to the season and said the World Series goal will still be in reach.
“It was a tough way to end, but all-in-all being 36-12, conference champions, regional runner-up,” Dintaman said. “It was a good year, but we still want more.”