
Senior staff writer
Roncalli and Perry Meridian locked into a bizarre baseball game April 26 at Holder Field.
The underdog Falcons held the 4A No. 6 Rebels to two runs on only one hit through five innings. Then Roncalli exploded for nine runs in the last two innings for an 11-1 triumph.
Slow starts, according to Roncalli coach Aaron Kroll, have been a problem for the Rebels, who won their ninth game in 13 starts.
“We have to come out better,” he said. “We’re struggling right now, leaving runners on base. We have good at-bats to get guys on base, but we don’t get them in.”
Roncalli had only five hits, but Perry Meridian hurlers walked 13 runners and hit two batters. But then the Rebels left 13 runners on base while leaving the bases loaded twice.
The sixth inning jinx continued for the Falcons. Leading 2-1, Roncalli’s Dylan Williams drove in two runs on a misjudged fly ball; two more runs scored when a Perry pitcher threw to an unattended first base; and a misfielded foul popup extended the inning. Harrison Koppenhofer had a double and was credited with four RBIs and scored twice. Dominic Brown scored three times after reaching base on three walks.
Perry Meridian’s Adam Taylor scored the team’s lone run in the fourth.
The Falcons (3-14) dropped their seventh straight game but turned it around Monday with a 9-1 win against Covenant Christian. Their record is deceiving, according to first-year coach Jake Banwart.
“Every game we play it seems like we come up with one inning full of mistakes,” Banwart said. “Our record doesn’t look pretty, but I believe we are one game away from really clicking. We are proving we can play against good teams.”
Perry Meridian is host to Warren Central in a first-round game Friday in the Marion County tournament, which continues Saturday. Roncalli is at home Friday against Speedway.
Softball notes: No. 1 Center Grove (18-0) continues to roll; Trojans dominated Perry Meridian 11-1 Monday in six innings with Jordyn Rudd getting two hits and driving in four runs … Roncalli edged rival Cathedral 5-4 with Lauren Fey becoming fifth Rebel to score 100 career runs; big hits came on Jordan Jenkins’ double and Scout Leffler’s home run … Southport keeps flying with 12-3 win Monday against Lutheran with multiple RBIs from Erin Curran, Vanessa Miller, Brittany Fisher and Emily Hursey … Cardinals came from behind last week to edge Franklin Central by one run … Marion County softball tourney quarterfinals at 10 a.m. Saturday at Ben Davis, followed by semifinals with the championship game Monday at 7 p.m.