A Mishap in Manhattan

Leading 4-2 with two outs in the sixth, Liberal need four outs to clinch their first regional win since 2018.  However, the Wichita Heights Falcons had other ideas.  Heights scored six unearned runs on one hit, three errors, two walks, and two hit batters.  Heights ended Liberal’s season 7-4 Tuesday afternoon at the 6A regional at Tointon Family Stadium in Manhattan.

Heights scored a run in the first inning after two Heights hits and Liberal’s inability to turn a double play.  The Redskin tied the game in the third.  Brooks Kappelmann hustled out a double on a fly ball to shallow center.  Zayden Martinez singled home a run.  The Redskins got a double play on a pop out to Erek Lira at third in the third.  LHS pitcher Brooks Kappelmann cruised through the fourth and the fifth with 1-2-3 innings.  The Skins scored three in the fifth.  Aidan Schwindt found the right center gap with a triple to lead off the fifth.  Brooks Kappelmann walked.  Zayden Martinez singled over the shortstop for the 2-1 lead.  Alex Schwindt golfed an RBI single to right for the 3-1 lead.  Landon Martinez grounded out to score a run.  In the fateful bottom of the sixth, the first man was retired.  The second Falcon reached on an error.  A double drove home a run to make it 4-2.  Then the pop out to third made it two outs with a 4-2 lead.  But Kappelmann was up against the pitch count and walked the last man he faced.  He had to leave the mound.  The next two hitters were hit by a pitch and a walk to score a run to make it 4-3.  A pop out to the outfield resulted in an error allowing two to score.  An error on the infield made it 6-4.  A wild pitch scored the seventh run.

The Redskins out-hit the Falcons 7-4 but committed four errors while Heights had two errors.

Zayden Martinez was 2-4 with two RBI’s.  Brooks Kappelmann pitched 5 and 2/3 innings and did not allow an earned run.  He struck out seven and walked three.  Kappelmann finishes the season with 82 strikeouts.  That’s the most in Redskin recorded history breaking Braxton Hyde’s mark of 59 K’s in 2019.  Cole Evans struck out 58 in 2017 and 56 in 2016.

Heights is 12-9 and Liberal finishes 10-11.