Barhorst was the walkoff hero, collecting his 100th career hit with a one-out single to left field that scored Cameron Benoit in the bottom of the seventh inning and gave the Eagles a sectional championship.
“I saw it go to the outfield after it tipped off (the third baseman’s glove). I was just hoping he could get home from that point,” said Barhorst, a senior shortstop. “All around, it was just great. I got a little water bath after the game.”
Benoit led off the seventh by drawing a walk from Rams reliever Cameron Madden. Garrett Wissman then struck out, but the ball got past catcher Zac Wilson, allowing Benoit to move to second.
Ryan Peltier was intentionally walked to set up a force, and Barhorst fell behind 0-2 in the count.
“They just walked the guy before. That means, ‘Hey, I’ve got to step up and do it here,’ ” Barhorst said. “So I came up confident. I got down early, and at that point I was just like, ‘I can’t strike out here.’ I fouled one off the shin, so I was dealing with a little bit of pain in my shin. I just tried to do anything I could to hit it out there.”
Peltier pitched a six-hitter for second-seeded CJ (18-4). He earned all three wins in a sweep of the Rams this season.
Seth Klaiber threw six strong innings for 10th-seeded Badin (15-15), last year’s state runner-up. The junior right-hander gave up five hits, struck out five and didn’t allow an earned run.
“We were definitely prepared. I don’t think anyone works as hard as us out there,” Rams senior center fielder Gavin Matthews said. “We definitely have high standards, and this team will be back next year.
“I wouldn’t trade any of the memories that I’ve made with those 27 guys for anything. I’m proud that I could wear that ‘B’ for four years. I’m probably more proud of that than anything in my life. Those guys know what that ‘B’ means, and they’re going to carry it on. It’s going to be like that for years to come.”
Matthews delivered a sacrifice fly and Kaden Kimbrell added an RBI single for Badin in the first inning. Kimbrell, a freshman, was the only Ram with two hits in the game.
Peltier, a junior right-hander, gave up four hits in the opening frame, but got stronger from there. He struck out three and walked three.
“If you’re going to get to him, it’s usually that first inning,” CJ coach Mike Barhorst said. “I talked to him about maybe warming up earlier today and trying to get like an inning under his belt before he even got on the mound. It took him a little while to work in his offspeed stuff. Usually once he gets that offspeed working, he’s really hard to hit.”
The Rams’ four errors played a key role in the defeat, according to Badin coach Brion Treadway.
“At the end of the day, we’ve got to make the plays,” he said. “Our pitchers battled really hard, but we’ve got to do a better job on 0-2 and 1-2 counts when they have hitters on the defensive. CJ put a lot of those pitches in play. We’ve got to get better at making that an unhittable pitch.”
Klaiber threw over 100 pitches and worked in and out of trouble all day. He issued three walks.
“I thought his stuff was good,” Treadway said. “The umpire’s zone was very, very, very tight for both sides. We were literally setting up right down the middle because we couldn’t really do anything else. With that being said, this was not the umpire’s fault. We’ve got to make the plays.”
Treadway wasn’t pleased with a call in the top of the seventh. Drew Holderbach connected for a two-out single, and Daunte DeCello was then hit by a pitch. But the home-plate umpire kept him at the plate, and that led to a strikeout.
“They said he stuck his elbow up to get hit on purpose,” said Treadway, who chose not to comment further on the call.
The Eagles had no errors, yet did leave nine runners on base. Mike Barhorst was a proud dad when his son got the game-winning hit.
“It’s nerve-wracking, but I know he’s usually going to put the ball in play and give you a good at-bat,” the CJ coach said. “He hadn’t done a whole lot today before that. You hope that one of your seniors, a team captain, is able to step up and be the guy to do it for you. Thankfully, he came through in the clutch.
“Badin’s always going to give you a great, quality game. Klaiber is a hell of a pitcher. They threw the first punch with two runs in the first. I said that we’ve just got to find a way to stand our ground and dodge some more punches and start landing jabs of our own. I kind of used that analogy the whole seven innings. I told them in the seventh, ‘We’ve got to land a knockout punch right here.’ ”
The Eagles, the GCLC North Division champions, are seeking their first district crown since reaching the Division III regional finals in 2014. They will meet Taylor at 11 a.m. on Saturday at Carlisle.
“If we keep playing like we’re playing,” Mike Barhorst said, “I think we’ve got a real good shot.”
“I really think this team has a chance to go to state and go all the way,” Mark Barhorst said. “We’ve got great pitching. We’ve got great hitting. We field well. I say there’s no limit to what we can do.”
Badin, meanwhile, is set to graduate eight seniors: Matthews, Madden, Will Sackenheim, A.J. Ernst, Nick Taylor, Zach Tyree, Andrew Roell and Ryan McGill.
“The hardest part is just saying goodbye to seniors,” Treadway said. “They put four years into the program, so you get close to them as people. Just the finality of the do-or-die setup of the tournament is addicting on the winning side and devastating on the losing side.”
The Rams won the GCLC Central Division title, their 25th league crown in the last 26 years. They also finished with the first non-winning record since going 15-15 in 2006.
“A long time ago, the players and coaches set the standard for baseball at Badin, and there’s very high expectations in the program,” Treadway said. “I think we’re at a point where a lot of those expectations are unspoken. So for the guys, that’s their motivation all offseason and during the season.
“I’m just proud to coach at Badin High School and to get to work with Badin baseball players. I’m lucky to have the opportunity to get to know these guys through high school and on in life. I’ll always be proud to wear the ‘B.’ ”
Badin 200-000-0—2-6-4
Chaminade Julienne 100-100-1—3-6-0
WP — Ryan Peltier (8-0); LP — Cameron Madden (3-3). Records: B 15-15, C 18-4
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