Honaker wins first baseball crown School Community

Honaker wins first baseball crown

Written by Hamish Costello on July 1, 2011 – 7:34 am

It was a story no writer could have imagined, from a script no Hollywood producer would believe, with an emotional final scene even Shakespeare would have struggled to do justice.

Tom Harding started the day in a hospital bed and ended it in the dugout as Honaker won its first state baseball championship with a 16-9 win over J.J. Kelly in the Group A, Division 2 finals Saturday at Radford University.

There was drama in this one before the game even began, and not even a nearly two-hour rain and lightning delay could ruin its long-awaited conclusion.

Here was a school that existed in name only after shutting its doors a week earlier, playing its final game against a school whose beloved coach, seeking his first state title in an illustrious 41-year career, suffered a heart attack Friday morning and missed that day’s semifinals.

J.J. Kelly has been the top program in Group A baseball for decades, having won nine state championships since 1982. It will be consolidated with Pound High School this fall.

The Indians struck first on Saturday. Zack Stidham’s two-out, three-run triple staked Kelly to a 3-0 lead in the first inning.

The Tigers left two men on base in the first, but in the second inning they started picking up where they left off in a 21-run outburst in a semifinal rout of Appomattox County.

Jordan Hess and Tre Bunn singled in runs in the second, then the Tigers were able to take advantage of Stidham and reliever Christian Kunce’s wildness in the third.

Honaker drew 13 walks, including five in inning number three, when it sent 12 men to the plate and scored eight runs. The Tigers took the lead for good on a two-run homer by Chaz Miller and added three more runs in the third on a bases-loaded triple by freshman Austin Kiser.

The Tigers built a 12-3 lead and answered rallies by J.J. Kelly with a couple more of their own, taking a 16-8 lead before the rains came. Honaker finished with a possible state-record 44 runs in three tournament games, but official records for spring sports are spotty, at best, in Virginia.

“We’ve stressed having a plan at the plate all season,” said Honaker assistant Alex Zachwieja, who was acting head coach in Harding’s absence. “The kids finally caught on and came around this week. I just can’t say enough about how these kids have responded.”

Miller, Kiser and Bunn all finished with three RBIs, while Jordon Dye delivered three doubles for the Tigers.

Jeremiah Dye had three hits while Bunn, Miller and Payton Ball added two apiece to Honaker’s 14-hit attack. Nine of those hits went for extra bases, including two triples by Ball.

The Indians didn’t get men on base as often as the Tigers, but they had their share of big hits, as well, including Nick Sturgill’s towering, three-run opposite field homer to right that cut the deficit to 12-7 in the fourth.

Grayson Hale and senior catcher Nick Ascue each had two hits. Israel Bolling’s sacrifice fly in the fifth made it 12-8 for Kelly, which mounted its share of comebacks this season, especially in the final two weeks.

“The kids battled, just like they have all year. They didn’t quit,” J.J. Kelly coach Chad Longworth said. “I’m proud of every one of them.

“But if I had to lose to anyone, I would want it to be to Tom Harding getting his first state title. I hate to lose, but to be a part of that, that was awesome.”

Harding drew a standing ovation when the Honaker crowd spotted him in the press box in the sixth inning. He drew Chaz Miller’s attention from the mound after play resumed in the bottom of the seventh.

Miller, who worked seven innings in the state semifinals on Friday, relieved winning pitcher Derrick Murphy in the fifth. He threw two innings before the delay, but said he felt no pain, then or in the final inning.

“I looked over in the dugout and saw that white beard,” said Miller, who walked Aaron Clark leading off the seventh. “I thought he was going to come out and talk to me. I kind of wish he had.

“I had so much adrenaline, I felt fine. This was Derrick’s game. I just wanted to finish it.”

Harding was as happy to be there for his five seniors, including three four-year starters in Miller, Murphy and third baseman Cory Brown, as he was to celebrate his first state title.

“Chaz threw seven innings [Friday] and then he had to get loose again after the delay,” Harding said. “But he’s a senior and I’ve got a lot of confidence in him.

“I feel very blessed to have those three for four years. I don’t know if I can say enough about [Miller and Murphy], they’ve been our go-to guys for four years.”

Harding received one more long ovation during the trophy and medal ceremony after the game, an emotional final act of a drama-filled weekend.

“I begged and pleaded and I don’t know, there might have been a threat or two in there,” joked Harding about getting doctors to release him a day after two stents were put in his chest to improve blood flow. “I really wanted to get here for our last game.”

“I’m so happy Tom was able to get here,” Zachwieja added. “For us to be here playing J.J. Kelly, in their last year, and to beat a team with their tradition is a great achievement for the Honaker program.”

School Community

Programs And Activities In School Education Process