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LANCASTER — For a second consecutive evening, the Minford Falcons completed an improbable comeback.
Only, on Friday, it secured the program’s second-ever trip to a state tournament and the first since 2018.
Minford (22-6) used a three-run sixth inning to take its first lead of the day, and it never looked back in a gutsy 6-5 win over Portsmouth in a Division III regional final at Beavers Field.
“These boys, oh my god … I just can’t believe this,” Minford coach Eli Daniels said. “I love them. I’m so proud of them. They drive me insane sometimes but they know how to play this game. They don’t know the word ‘quit.’ It’s not in their vocabulary. It doesn’t matter what the score is. We’re always in it. I truly believe that and so do they.”
CREDIT: Derrick Webb/SOSA
The Trojans (24-7) struck the scoreboard first.
In the top of the first inning, Camron Williams reached base before stealing second and eventually scoring on a passed ball, making it 1-0.
After Minford left a pair stranded on the base paths in the second, Portsmouth’s Jacob Roth roped an RBI double into left field before Williams logged a sacrifice fly for a 3-0 tally.
Minford finally broke the scoring seal in the top of the third, thanks to an opposite field RBI single from Rhyan Queen.
But the Trojans had an answer in the bottom half, plating two runs on RBI singles from Zach Roth and Collin Perry, pushing their advantage to 5-1.
It was crunch time — again — for Minford.
But just like they did in their 11-4 regional semifinal win, a game where they trailed early by a 4-0 count, the Falcons fought back.
“We’re always locked in for seven innings,” Daniels said. “We were riding off that high [from Thursday’s 11-4 win]. We are good enough that opponents are going to have to get seven innings of baseball in. That’s how they’re going to have to beat us. Last night showed that and so did today.”
Ty Borland legged out a bunt single to begin the top of the fourth, stole second and later scored on an RBI single from Carson Cronin. Then, in the fifth, Grant Wheeler was hit by a pitch before moving to third on a throwing error. When he scored on a wild pitch, Portsmouth’s lead had been cut to 5-3.
The sixth was where the Falcons left their final mark.
Borland bunted for a second infield hit before scoring a second RBI single from Cronin. Mason Book then stepped to the plate and tripled into left-center field, scoring Cronin for a 5-5 deadlock.
Wheeler then followed suit, logging an RBI triple of his own to five Minford its first lead before the inning came to a close.
“It’s just stuff you hear about, honestly,” Daniels said. “We just wanted to hit the ball down and hard. Put it in play. If we hit the ball down and hard, we’ll let the cards fall where they may. We’re all about barreling balls and line drives. That’s what we’ve been about all year and that’s what we’ll continue to be about.”
In the bottom half of the sixth, Portsmouth put a runnner on third base with one out. But Wheeler, who came to the hill in relief of Max Lauder, struck out the next batter and induced a inning-ending groundout.
In the seventh, Wheeler retired the Trojans’ side in order, sealing the victory.
“The kid is something special,” Daniels said of Wheeler. “All year, he’s been special at the plate and in the field. We haven’t really even pitched him that much this year. He’s coming off labrum surgery. So he’s been a little iffy. We finally got the green light to where he’d be able to pitch in the postseason and thank God we did.”
Statistically, Cronin led the Falcons with a 3-for-4 effort alongside two runs and two RBIs. Borland was 2-for-3 with two runs, Book was 1-for-4 with an RBI triple and a run, and Wheeler was 1-for-3 with an RBI triple and a run.
Portsmouth was led by Jacob Roth, who was 2-for-4 with an RBI while Zach Roth finished 1-for-3 with an RBI and a run. Three other Trojans had a base hit each.
On the bump, Lauder earned the win in 4 1/3 innings of work. He surrendered an earned run on five hits. Wheeler got the save in 1 2/3 innings.
Minford will now meet with Millbury Lake, who defeated Coldwater in a Division III state semifinal at 10 a.m. on Saturday at Akron’s Canal Park.
“It’s new territory for this group,” Daniels said. “But we’re going to play Falcon baseball and whatever happens, happens. We’re cool with it. We know that if we play our game, we have our best chance to win.”
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