Displaying items by tag: StapletonZack

2015 Senior Colts Baseball Team

---

 

 Derrick Webb, Reporter11:02 p.m. EDT July 20, 2016

CHILLICOTHE - A mixed bag of results led to a summer baseball season ending Wednesday evening.

After beating Hillsboro Post 129 early in the day to advance in the 2016 Region V American Legion Tournament at VA Memorial Stadium, Chillicothe Post 757 fell 17-7 to Waverly Post 142 in the nightcap, effectively ending their 2016 campaign.

"This week is always a grind," Chillicothe Post 757 coach Tom Barr said. "Win, lose or draw, you have to tip your cap to both Jacob Chester and JD Blevins. Both of those guys manned up for us and threw well on short rest. They're both competitors. That's the kind of mentality they have."

As Barr eluded to, Chester carried the Colts (15-21) to a victory against Hillsboro earlier in the day. In a 4-3 win, Chester was handed a no-decision but threw 8 1/3 innings before getting the hook. His final line included 104 pitches, seven hits allowed, a single earned run and three strikeouts.

"We probably could have done a better job as a coaching staff of moving some guys around a little more but at this point in the season, you've got to go with who you think your best is and Jacob was that," Barr said.

With the game scoreless, 757 took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the fourth inning as Trenton Harris scored on an RBI triple off the bat of Blevins. Hillsboro answered in the fifth on an RBI groundout to make it 1-1.

In the bottom half of the inning, the Colts retook the lead thanks to RBI doubles from Anthony Sipple and Zack Stapleton. That 3-1 edge lasted until the top of the seventh when 129 cut the deficit to 3-2 on an RBI single. Hillsboro forced a 3-3 stalemate in the ninth before 757 came up with some late inning heroics.

Brian Smith drew a walk and immediately stole second base to put himself in scoring position. Stapleton laid down a bunt to move Smith to third and with Eli Kunkel standing at the plate, Smith scored on a passed ball to hand the Colts a 4-3 walk-off win.

"I thought our guys came out and fought hard to get that first win today," Barr said. "That's not an easy thing to do after playing in 90-degree heat most of the week. When (Smith) got to third, we knew we had a pretty good shot."

Blevins was credited with the win after pitching 2/3 of an inning of relief. The southpaw then started the next contest, nearly three hours later, and gave up just three earned runs to Waverly in five innings of work.

The Shockers (16-13) fell to Circleville Post 134 to begin the day by a 14-4 final. They were then pitted against 757 in the losers' bracket championship.

With Waverly leading 4-3 heading into the fifth inning, 757 strung together four runs on three hits, three walks and a passed ball to seize a 7-4 advantage. 142 answered with three runs in the sixth to force a 7-7 tie. The Shockers pounded out 10 runs in the next two innings to win by the run-rule.

"We did what we had to do to get to the championship," Waverly coach Johnathan Teeters said. "Give our team credit for bouncing back after that first game and coming out ready to play. We really started to hit the ball. Hopefully, that will carry over until tomorrow. Our guys will be ready to go."

On the day, Waverly's Logan Shoupe was 4-for-7 with an RBI and five runs scored. Jared Alley followed by finishing 3-for-7 with a double, four runs and a pair of RBIs. Logan Kottenbrook was also productive with a 3-for-8 day including two runs, two doubles and an RBI.

For 757, Sipple led the offense by going 5-for-8 with three RBIs, two doubles and two runs. Hayden Henness helped out by finishing 3-for-7 with an RBI and a run as Stapleton was 2-for-7 with an RBI, a double and a run.

As the Colts look towards 2017, Waverly will meet with Circleville 134 in the Region V district championship at 4 p.m. Thursday, back at VA Memorial Stadium.

"The guys who are wanting to come back are going to have to tryout just like everyone else," Barr said. "We're going to take the guys who are willing to come in and do what they need to do, what we expect them to do. We have guys in our program who donate hundreds of hours and they deserve the best product we can put on the field. That's the goal."

dwebb@chillicothegazette.com

Twitter: @dw1509

 Derrick Webb, Reporter7:29 p.m. EDT July 13, 2016

 

CHILLICOTHE - As Chillicothe Post 757 heads towards the Region V Tournament, the Colts are in good hands when comes to a leadership aspect.

Veterans Zack Stapleton, Leo Woods and Cody Hendershot are all in their last year with the organization and, because of that factor, they're determined to carry their team on the deepest postseason run possible.

The recipe for that hoped for success? Heart, togetherness and hitting the cover off the ball.

"We can win the whole thing if we put our minds to it," Woods said, a four-year veteran on the club. "We have to come out playing in every game, play together and listen to our coaches. We've got a lot of new kids this year, who have never been in the tournament. It's up to us older guys to show them the ropes."

The Colts (11-18) have just two regular season games left, a doubleheader with Hillsboro Post 129 on Thursday evening before the tournament starts. In a double-elimination format, two losses over the weekend signal the end of three storied 757 careers.

"The other night, we played our last game on our home field," Hendershot recalled, speaking of Post 757's JW Hoffman Field in Chillicothe's Mary Lou Patton Park. "That was a bittersweet feeling. I love playing here. It's been home for seven years. To know that I was stepping on that field for the last time, in a game sense, it was emotional."

Hendershot, 19, has spent the longest of the three with the Colts as the 2016 summer marks his seventh in blue and gold. The Southeastern High School graduate originally planned to play for 757's crosstown rival Post 62, but thought otherwise when the two parties' first meeting didn't go as planned.

"When I came out of little league, I wanted to play for Post 62 because that's where all of my friends were playing," Hendershot said. "But there was a lot of 'daddy ball' so to speak. So when I showed up to tryouts, they didn't want me because they already had their team picked. I then came to 757 and (coach) Tom (Barr) gave me the chance. After my first year here and pretty much every year since, I've been offered the chance to go to 62. But I haven't done that because they didn't want me."

At 19 years old, Stapleton is in his sixth season with the Colts out of Jackson High School.

"A kid from Jackson told me to come up and try out when I was around 13 years old," Stapleton said. "That's what brought me here and I've stayed ever since. I've grown up with some of the guys I've met here and have made some really good friends."

Whatever the reason in which the three came to 757, the Colts are glad they have them on the roster. But as Hendershot alluded to, Barr is a central reason why they continue to show up summer after summer.

"Coach Barr is a confidence booster and he likes playing the game hard," Stapleton said. "He doesn't like losing and neither do I. I've grown a lot as a ballplayer since coming here. Going into my freshman year, I didn't want to play any sport. Coach Barr is one of the main reasons why I played high school baseball. It's been a roller coaster ride for me but I'm glad I'm on it."

The seeding for this weekend's tournament, being held at VA Memorial Stadium, will take place Friday. No matter where they're seeded or who they're eventually slated to play, 757's goal is a clear one.

"We want to win. Period," Woods said. "We've got a lot of talented guys on our roster and they're able to get the job done. Zack, Cody and myself have to be the leaders. We have to bring the intensity and we have to get our guys up. If we do that, you never know, you may just see an underdog win a tournament championship."

dwebb@chillicothegazette.com

Twitter: @dw1509

Follow along

The Gazette will have live coverage of the American Legion Region V Tournament as Chillicothe's Post 62 and 757 both vie for a championship. Follow @dw1509 on Twitter for updates throughout the event and visit chillicothegazette.com for full details.

Gazette Staff 8:43 p.m. EDT July 1, 2016

PORTSMOUTH - After getting off the schneid with a 6-5 win over Hillsboro Thursday, Chillicothe Post 757 found itself back in the L column Friday night.

On the road at Branch Rickey Park in Portsmouth, the Colts (8-14) fell to Post 23 by a 7-1 final, carving out just six hits in the process.

Left-hander JD Blevins (2-4) took the loss on the mound, throwing five innings of six-hits baseball. Blevins allowed seven runs, four earned, and struck out eight hitters while walking two.

Leading the Colts’ offense was Zack Stapleton, who went 2-for-2, while Skylar McDonald, Eli Kunkel, Bo Dratwa, and Trenton Harris all finished with one hit each. Dratwa scored 757’s lone run.

Chillicothe will get back to business Tuesday night at VA Memorial Stadium, taking on Waverly Post 142 at 4 p.m.

 Derrick Webb, Reporter10:31 p.m. EDT June 29, 2016

 

CHILLICOTHE - In its first two meetings with Chillicothe Post 757 this summer, Chillicothe Post 62 was outscored 12-3 in two losses.

But the third meeting was a charm for the Riverbats (10-7) as they beat the Colts on Wednesday night by a 6-1 final at Ross County Park.

The victory came on the heels of a superb pitching performance from starter Josh George, who tossed all seven innings without allowing an earned run. The right-handed knuckleballer struck out four, walked two and allowed nine hits.

"Josh wanted this game bad," Post 62 coach Bo Popp said. "He played for Post 757 last year so he told me: 'I'm going all seven innings.' I just told him to do what he does. But he pitched well tonight and carried us."

While the Colts (7-13) were kept off balance thanks to George, Post 62's offense tagged the ball well throughout the game. Facing Colts' starter Jacob Chester, the Riverbats came up with timely hitting and took advantage of each Post 757 fielding miscue.

"Right now, we're in the swing of things and we're hitting the baseball like we should right at the right times," Popp said. "These boys are playing their hearts out. I'm extremely proud of them."

In the bottom of the first, Post 62 took an early 1-0 edge when Russell Throckmorton pranced home on an RBI single off the bat of Gage Jones. That lead would stay the same until the bottom of the fourth.

Hunter Hopkins started the fourth with a single into left field, followed by a double from Tanner Doles to put runners on second and third with none gone. After Chester struck the next batter out, Throckmorton singled into right field, scoring Hopkins and moving Doles to third. With the score 2-0, Jeremy Brooks grounded out to second, plating Doles and making it 3-0.

Carson Stauffer then stepped to the plate with two outs and singled home Throckmorton, allowing the lead to swell to 4-0.

Post 757 finally got on the board in the top of the fifth. Hayden Henness led the inning off with a single before moving to second on a sacrifice bunt. Henness then scored on an RBI single from Zack Stapleton, cutting the deficit to 4-1.

But that was the only run the Colts would muster.

In the bottom of the sixth, Post 62 added two more insurance runs on RBI singles from Owen Diehl and Tanner Popp to seal the deal.

"We're playing really good baseball right now, and we feel like we're hitting our stride at the right time," Bo Popp said. "We beat Athens in the 12th inning in our last game and we won like we did tonight. We've got to use that momentum now to get the ball rolling even more."

The Riverbats pounded out a team total of 15 hits; six players had two each. Both teams left nine on the base paths.

For Post 62, Throckmorton was 2-for-4 with two runs and an RBI; Stauffer was 2-for-4 with a run, two stolen bases, and an RBI; Jones was 2-for-3 with a run and an RBI; Diehl was 2-for-4 with an RBI; Popp was 2-for-4 with an RBI; and Doles was 2-for-3 with a run.

Chester took the loss for the Colts, throwing six innings and allowing six runs — five earned — on 15 hits. The southpaw struck out three and walked one.

At the plate, Henness finished 2-for-3 with a run and Stapleton was 2-for-3 with an RBI. Eli Kunkel and Bo Dratwa both chipped in as well, going 2-for-4 and 2-for-2, respectively.

Post 757 will be back in action Thursday night against Hillsboro Post 129 at Hoffman Field in Chillicothe's Mary Lou Patton Park. Post 62 also will play again Thursday, traveling to Branch Rickey Park to take on Portsmouth Post 23.

dwebb@chillicothegazette.com

Twitter: @dw1509