Gallery by Heather Belcher
Prior the state baseball tournament, Independence senior Brayden Kiblinger said the gravity of the situation had not fully hit him.
His quote was “I am just playing baseball right now.”
Kiblinger and his teammates have now earned the right to play one more baseball game, this one for the second baseball state championship in school history.
Scoring two runs each in the sixth and seventh innings, the No. 4 seed Patriots erased an early 3-0 deficit to defeat defending state champion and No. 1 seed Winfield 4-3 in the Class AA semifinals Friday morning at Go-Mart Park in Charleston.
Independence will battle Frankfort for the Class AA title 45 minutes after the conclusion of the Class AAA title game which starts at 10 a.m. Saturday morning.
The No. 2 seed Falcons bested No. 3 seed Herbert Hoover 2-1 in eight innings on a walk-off single from Uriah Cutter.
“Postseason games are typically close and it comes down to a couple of big hits,” Winfield head coach Will Isaacs said. “In the first couple of innings we had runners on base because we had good swing decisions. We put pressure on them and they made some mistakes. Then they put some guys on and they came up with the big hit. (Independence) deserved to win because they continued to play. When they had opportunities they came through.”
Trailing by three runs, the Patriots began to chip away at the lead in the top of the sixth inning.
Cole Cunningham walked to open the at-bat and Degan Williams followed with his second double of the contest.
An infield single from Orion Wills snapped the shutout, but Williams was later erased on a squeeze bunt attempt for the first out of the inning.
Undaunted by the unfortunate turn of events, Reid Warden pushed the second run across on a fielder’s choice to make it a 3-2 ball game.
After finding a way to scratch across three runs in the first two innings, the Generals struggled to get runners aboard over the next five frames.
Isaacs gave much of the credit to Cunningham who kept Indy in the game until his team could score some runs.
“Most of the time he would throw his breaking ball up and (drop) it into the strike zone. We were prepared for that. Then he would start his breaking ball in the strike zone and going out. We weren’t disciplined enough to not swing at those,” Isaacs said. “We did a good job of laying off of those pitches early. We had a couple of at-bats with runners on and we chased those pitches. He did a good job. That is what a good player does, they adjust depending on what the opponent is doing.”
Cunningham knew runs would be at a premium, but had complete confidence in his teammates.
“Obviously at the start of the game you are going to be nervous. Everybody is nervous because it is a big game,” Cunningham said. “We have always fought. It has never been us being up big and having a lead. It is always fighting. We are used to it. After a while you just have to lock in, throw strikes and let your team do the work. You have to trust each other at the plate. We came together as a team.”
Needing one run to extend the game, the Patriots scored two in the seventh inning to take the lead.
Levi Barnett singled to start the rally and Kiblinger walked to move him into scoring position setting up a obvious bunt attempt.
“Anytime you can go late in the game, I think the pressure swings to the favorite or the home team sometimes,” Independence head coach Scott Cuthbert said. “We got Levi on there and we were debating to get the tying run in scoring position, but it worked out in our favor today. We were fortunate to come out on top.”
After falling behind, no balls and two strikes, Blake Stratton worked a crucial walk to load the bases for Cunningham.
Also one pitch away from the first out with a two-ball and two-strike count, Cunningham remained patient and walked to score the tying run.
“I am not going to lie. At the beginning of the at-bat I was trying to go yard,” Cunningham said. “When you get two strikes, it’s all about team. It’s not your at-bat, it’s the team’s at-bat. I finally laid off a pitch high and got the run in that we needed.”
The eventual game winner came on a sacrifice fly from Williams before a huge defensive play from Winfield kept them in the game.
“I am just stepping in there and attacking it. We had three people on base. I knew I just had to do a job and I did that,” Williams said.
Shortstop Owen Taylor gobbled up Orion Wills’ hot shot that appeared to be going for a single with a sliding catch which he turned into a double play to end the threat.
The defending Class AA state champs did not go quietly.
A walk to open the bottom of the seventh ended Cunningham’s day and brought Reid Warden in from left field to pitch.
After admitting the regional pitching win over PikeView was the most nervous he had ever been, Warden stepped into the limelight with a state tournament berth on the line.
“I don’t even know if I remember it,” Warden said about the walk in from left field. “I just knew I had to go up there and throw strikes. I am glad I (could) do that.”
Facing the top of the Winfield order, Warden recorded the first out on a sacrifice bunt before the action took a crazy turn.
Karson Frye lifted a soft liner over Warden towards Kiblinger at shortstop. Making a play on the ball, Kiblinger collided with the runner advancing to third base.
Initially, no obstruction was called, but Cuthbert asked for a meeting with the second base umpire. After a conference, the runner was ruled out, erasing a golden opportunity for the Generals.
“We had that happen to us last year on the other end. It was a regular season game and actually it was Kibby the one running,” Cuthbert said. “I asked the second base umpire and I thought they did a good job getting together. (The second base umpire) had his back turned. I am glad it went our way.”
Isaacs agreed with the call.
“I am not an umpire, but I thought (the fielder) had to have a play on the ball. I thought it was the pitcher making the play and it wasn’t,” Isaacs said. “It was the shortstop’s ball and there was contact. We are not going to cry around about that. That didn’t beat us. We still have to drive them in. Three of the umpires agreed and that is how the game is played.”
In the commotion of the play and umpire meeting, Warden was seen kneeling behind the pitching mound.
“He threw four pitches and threw up four times,” Cuthbert said. “When I walked out there I asked him if he was all right and he said he was. I told him he didn’t look very good. He did what he had to do in a tough spot. They all probably had some nervous bellies today.”
Warden laughed it off, but was not coming out of the game.
“I didn’t necessarily eat breakfast this morning and that combined with all of the people cheering,” Warden said about the incident. “I have never played in a game this big and never had this many people. It just felt awesome.”
Warden gathered himself and recorded a strikeout for the final out, sending Indy to the state title game for the fourth time in Independence school history.
“It is everything I have ever dreamed for. It is what I sit at home and think about,” Warden said “That moment right there is what keeps me awake at night. Sending my teammates to the state tournament after we just fought back, it just feels amazing.”
Cuthbert naturally hopes his team has the magic for one more win.
“We tried to treat this like a regular game today. I don’t know if that helped or not, but they didn’t seem real tight. Cole settled down, but he was probably a little nervous too. He pitched lights-out there,” Cuthbert said. “When you get to this level, anyone can win on any given day. You have four really good teams and baseball is weird sometimes. The last time I was down here, we were the overall favorite and we went home in the first round. I hope we can play well tomorrow.”
The lone baseball championship for Independence came in 1990.
