Sandelovic does it all for Shiner in win over D'Hanis
Thursday, May 24, 2012
Mike Forman, Victoria Advocate Sports Writer
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CONVERSE - Ky Sandelovic watched in disbelief as he saw the ball heading into left field.
Ky Sandelovic delivers a pitch during the Shiner's Game 1 win Thursday over D'Hanis. The two teams will play again on Saturday. Photos courtesy of Harry Reese
The Shiner pitcher's opportunity for a no-hitter was gone with two outs in the fifth inning.
"I was just hoping I wouldn't blow it like I did in Flatonia," Sandelovic said. "That was the second time that happened this year."
Sandelovic shook off the hit to strike out the next batter and complete the Comanches' 10-0 mercy-rule win over D'Hanis in Game 1 of their Class 1A regional semifinal series Thursday night at the Judson field.
"I felt good tonight," Sandelovic said. "I just put it over the plate, hoping they would put the ball in play. I got a lot of strikeouts. I didn't expect that this late in the playoffs."
Sandelovic struck out nine and did not walk a batter as Shiner improved to 23-7. The Comanches will try to wrap up the series when the teams return to Judson for Game 2 on Saturday at 4:30 p.m.
If the Cowboys (25-5) win, Game 3 will follow Game 2.
Shiner backed Sandelovic with 11 hits, including the pitcher's solo home run to lead off the third inning.
"He just put it over the plate," Sandelovic said. "I just swung and it carried. I thought it was a popup off the bat."
Shiner's Ky Sandelovic high-fives Chase Arledge after hitting a home run against D'Hanis during the Comanches' Game 1 win Thursday in the Class 1A regional semifinals. The two teams play Game 2 on Saturday.
The Comanches scored in every inning and had four runs in the fourth to take a 9-0 lead.
"We took a very good game approach," said shortstop Brady Cejka, who had three hits. "Coach tells us you always have to stay about 90 percent and don't get your heads too high. We came and hit the ball well. We were seeing the ball good, Ky did an amazing job on the mound, and we had great defense too. It was an all-around good game for us."
Sandelovic pitched a no-hitter in Shiner's area playoff win over Bartlett. D'Hanis had only two base runners, one which reached on an error in the second inning before Chance Barlow's single in the fifth.
"He threw his off-speed pitches well," said Shiner coach Daniel Boedeker. "He was able to mix it up and keep them off balance and that helped us too."
Shiner helped itself by taking advantage of almost every scoring opportunity and leaving only four runners on base.
"I thought our kids had a good approach," Boedeker said. "The No. 1 thing is we wanted to come in and take good at-bats. We wanted to stay short to the ball and hit a lot of line drives and ground balls and give ourselves chances to get on. I thought we did a good job of that tonight."
The Comanches are hoping for a repeat performance in Game 2.
"That's what I told them," Boedeker said. "We've got to take the same intensity on Saturday because we've still got some work to do."
Class 1A Regional Semifinal Game 1 Shiner 10, D'Hanis 0 Shiner 212 41 - 10 11 1 D'Hanis 000 00 - 0 1 4 Ky Sandolovic and Zach Reese. Clint Rothe, Cody Zerr (2) and Nathan Young, Rothe (2). W: Sandelovic. L: Rothe. HR: (S) Sandolovic (solo). 2B: (S) Donovan Mardis, Brady Cejka, Reese. Highlights: (D) Chance Barlow 1 for 2. (S) Sandolovic 5 IP, 1 H, 9 SO; Brady Cejka 3 for 3, 2 R, RBI; Reese 2 for 4, 2B, 2 RBIs, 2 R; Mardis 1 for 2, 2B, R, 2 RBIs; Cole Strauss 2 for 3, R. Records: Shiner 23-7; D'Hanis 25-5. Notes: Shiner leads series 1-0. Game 2 on Saturday at 4:30 p.m. at Judson; Game 3, if necessary, to follow.Mike Forman is a sports writer for the Victoria Advocate.
Contact him at 361-580-6588, or by e-mail at mforman@vicad.com.
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