Late homer by Friederich lifts Waterloo past Millstadt
One swing, one fastball down the middle was all veteran Waterloo Millers infielder Jake Friederich needed Sunday in the title game of the Valmeyer Mid-Summer Baseball Classic.
Long one of the top players in the Mon-Clair League, Friederich hit a one-out solo home run in the bottom of the eighth inning to break an 8-all tie and give the Millers a thrilling 9-8 win over Millstadt VFW at Borsch Memorial Park.
Friederich’s home run came on a 2-2 pitch from Millstadt reliever Steve Todoschuk and sailed over the left-center field fence.
After sprinting around the bases, Friederich received a hero’s welcome as the Millers’ bench erupted. Waterloo reliever Austin Nunnery then retired Millstadt in order in the ninth to give the Millers their second Valmeyer Mid-Summer Classic title in three years and fifth since 2006.
Following the game, as Millers players gathered for team and individual pictures, Friederich and longtime teammate Craig Ohlau posed for a special photo which is sure to make into both players’ photo albums. Friederich was chosen as the tournament’s most valuable player.
“We both started playing here (Waterloo) in the same season 12 years ago, so I just wanted a picture with him (Ohlau),’’ Friederich said. “It feels great to be able to come through. It was a fastball down the middle. I think he (Todoschuk) made a mistake and fortunately I hit it good. I knew it was out when I hit it.’’
Nunnery, who threw 15 pitches in Waterloo’s 8-1 semifinal win over Valmeyer on Saturday, worked five scoreless innings in relief to get the win. Now a sophomore at Southwestern Illinois College, the 19-year-old allowed just three hits after Millstadt VFW had scored eight runs in the first four innings to build an 8-5 lead.
A solo home run by Larry Schmas, a wild pitch and an RBI single by Ethan Ruff, all in the fifth inning, tied the game at 8. It stayed that way until Friederich untied it in the eighth to give legendary manager Vern Moehrs his 13th Mid-Summer Classic title.
“That was great to see. Jake’s been a great ballplayer for a long time,’’ Moehrs said. “This feels good. Millstadt is a heck of a team and they played well again today. I’m just glad we ended up with one more run than they did.’’
While Todoschuk and Austin Nunnery were the story as they shut down the opposing team’s offense for the final four innings.
Two of the top hitting teams in the Mon-Clair League, Waterloo and Millstadt, put on an offensive display in the first five innings, combining for 16 runs and 20 hits.
Millstadt scored twice in the second inning off Waterloo starter Eric Tiefenthaler as Brian Lupa and Ryan Rist had RBIs to give their team a 2-0 lead.
It didn’t last long.
The bottom of the second saw the first seven Millers collect base hits off Millstadt hurler Alex Kollack.
Jason Harrison, Brad Dillenberger, Friederich and Schmas all drove in runs in the inning, which saw 11 Millers bat as Waterloo took a 5-2 lead.
But Millstadt, which defeated Cape Girardeau 17-12 on Saturday, scored the next six runs to take an 8-5 lead as the top of its order came through.
In the third inning, Tony Kossina led off with a double off the left-field fence and three pitches later, Luke Matecki took a Tiefenthaler pitch over the left-field fence for a home run.
Two pitches later, brother Mitch Matecki tied the game at 5 with a home run to right.
Perhaps the Mon-Clair League’s top hitter, Mitch Matecki then untied the game in the fourth inning with his second homer in as many innings — this time a three-run blast which put Millstadt up 8-5.
But despite having a couple of excellent chances in the final four innings, Millstadt VFW would not score again as Nunnery shut it down.
“He’s just a great offensive player. He might be the best in the (Mon-Clair) league,’’ Millstadt VFW manager Norm Toenjes said of Mitch Matecki. “We had a couple of chances when we had runners in scoring position with less than two outs and we just didn’t get the big hit. Give him (Nunnery) credit. He made big pitches.
“We didn’t have much pitching left today, but I thought Alex (Kollack) and Steve (Todoschuk) did a good job. To come up just one run short, I was pleased with out effort.’’
Nunnery, who turned 19 in June, showed no signs of wear as he took the mound for the second straight day.
“I only threw a few pitches yesterday and so it was more like a warmup,’’ Nunnery said. “I had a lot left today and I felt strong. All of my pitches were working well. I was able to get ahead of the hitters and I felt like I could throw any of my pitches and get hitters out. I had a great changeup today.’’
In other games on Sunday, Cape Girardeau won the third-place trophy, beating Valmeyer 11-7, while the St. Louis Spikes defeated the St. Louis Printers 7-0 in the consolation title game.
Contact reporter Dean Criddle at dcriddle@bnd.com or 618-239-2661.
This story was originally published July 5, 2015 at 11:53 PM with the headline "Late homer by Friederich lifts Waterloo past Millstadt."