Patient Approach and Strong Pitching Power Litchfield Past Lebanon 9-1

The Litchfield varsity baseball team used a combination of dominant pitching and extreme patience at the plate to secure a 9-1 non-conference road victory over Lebanon on Wednesday afternoon.

For the first four innings, the game was a classic pitchers’ duel. Lebanon starter D. Washington was highly effective, yielding just one run and a single hit over four solid innings of work. However, Litchfield’s pitching tandem of Tucker Maguire and Max Gretjak proved equally stingy, keeping the Lebanon offense completely off balance all day.

The Purple Panthers’ offense finally broke the game open in the top of the fifth inning. Facing the Lebanon bullpen, Litchfield showcased incredible plate discipline. The visitors drew an astonishing 14 walks throughout the game, constantly putting pressure on the Greyhound defense. Litchfield capitalized on the free passes by hanging four runs on the board in the fifth, expanding their narrow 1-0 lead to a commanding 5-0 advantage.

Senior Ethan Saathoff provided the biggest swing of the day for Litchfield, launching a home run and finishing 3-for-5 with a run scored and an RBI. Fellow senior Titan Hires also delivered at the dish, going 2-for-5 with a pair of RBIs and two stolen bases. Sophomore Ryker Witt wreaked havoc on the basepaths, swiping three bags and scoring twice after reaching base twice via the walk.

Litchfield tacked on three more runs in the sixth inning and added a final insurance run in the seventh.

Lebanon managed to break up the shutout in the bottom of the sixth. After drawing a walk and stealing a pair of bases, junior Freddy Durbin crossed the plate on an RBI double off the bat of senior Collin Adams. Washington, Joseph Corbitt, and P. Konieczny also recorded hits for the Greyhounds.

Maguire earned the win for Litchfield with four scoreless innings, allowing just three hits and striking out six. Gretjak finished the game in relief, surrendering one run on one hit while fanning six batters over three innings. In total, the Litchfield duo racked up 12 strikeouts without allowing a single walk.

Lebanon relievers Joseph Corbitt and Henry Tilk struggled to find the strike zone in relief of Washington, issuing a combined 12 walks in three innings as the Greyhounds’ defense committed four errors behind them.

Game Summary

Score by Quarters

(Note: Innings played)

Scoring Drives

• 1st Inning:

  • Litchfield: 1 Run.

• 5th Inning:

  • Litchfield: 4 Runs.

• 6th Inning:

  • Litchfield: 3 Runs.

  • Lebanon: 1 Run.

• 7th Inning:

  • Litchfield: 1 Run.

Individual Statistics

BATTING:

• Litchfield: Ethan Saathoff (Sr) 3-5, 1 HR, 1 R, 1 RBI; Titan Hires (Sr) 2-5, 1 R, 2 RBI, 2 SB; Max Gretjak (Jr) 1-3, 2 R, 1 BB; Ryker Witt (So) 0-2, 2 R, 2 BB, 3 SB; Sam Schwab (Sr) 0-3, 1 R, 2 BB.

• Lebanon: Collin Adams (Sr) 1-2, 1 2B, 1 RBI, 1 BB; D. Washington (Jr) 1-3; Joseph Corbitt (Jr) 1-3; P. Konieczny (Fr) 1-2; Freddy Durbin (Jr) 0-1, 1 R, 2 BB, 2 SB.

PITCHING:

• Litchfield: Tucker Maguire (Sr) (W, 1-0) – 4.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 6 K; Max Gretjak (Jr) – 3.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 K.

• Lebanon: D. Washington (Jr) (L, 0-1) – 4.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 1 K; Henry Tilk (Fr) – 2.2 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 1 ER, 7 BB, 3 K; Joseph Corbitt (Jr) – 0.1 IP, 0 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 5 BB, 0 K.

FIELDING:

• Litchfield: Max Leitschuh (Sr) (11 PO, 1 A, 0 E); Ethan Saathoff (Sr) (4 PO, 1 A, 0 E). Team Errors: 0.

• Lebanon: Thomas Thacker (Fr) (7 PO, 0 E); Collin Adams (Sr) (5 PO, 0 E); Freddy Durbin (Jr) (1 PO, 3 A, 1 E); Henry Tilk (Fr) (2 A, 2 E). Team Errors: 4.