COLUMBIA -- What intimidates some will motivate others.
Notre Dame seemed undaunted by the aura of Simmons Field and the atmosphere of the Class 2A Final Four Wednesday in an 11-5 victory.
But Valley Park crumbled under the pressure of being a game away from a state title, committing five errors which led to three unearned runs.
The Bulldogs (26-3) made just one error and even their mistakes turned into favorable momentum switchers.
Perhaps the most important play of the game came in the bottom of the first after Notre Dame had already taken a 2-0 lead on a home run by Josh Eftink.
Valley Park (22-2) had the bases loaded with two outs and Hawk third baseman Garry Quick hit a shot to rightcenter. Bulldog center fielder Tommy Wencewicz tracked down the liner, but it bounced off the heel of his glove. But right fielder Todd Friend was hustling to back up Wencewicz and snagged the ball just before it hit the ground.
"That catch just set the tone for the game," said Notre Dame coach Chris Neff. "He's always, always there backing up. That kid plays hard."
"That hurt us," said Valley Park coach Brent Gregston. "From that point on, they knew it was their day."
Friend walked once, but otherwise had a rough day at the plate, going 0-for-3. But the sophomore saved three runs on that play and generally played excellent defense.
"It just popped right to me," Friend said. "I fell down and just caught it. I haven't been getting on base a lot lately, so I just thought I had to do something in the outfield."
"He's struggled some at the plate lately, but I'll never take him out of the lineup. He plays so well out there and he really showed up today."
Speaking of showing up, Notre Dame had its best offensive output of the postseason Wednesday.
The Bulldogs rapped out 11 hits and had two four-run innings.
The biggest blow of all was Eftink's blast to straight center which cleared the 400-foot sign by about 10 feet. On a full count and with Tommy Wencewicz at second base, Eftink said he was sitting on a fastball from Valley Park pitcher Brian Leuthauser (5-2).
"He was having trouble throwing his curve for strikes, so we were sitting back waiting for fastballs," Eftink said. "Everybody hit the ball hard today."
Eftink's 12th homer of the season gave Notre Dame a 2-0 lead and Friend's catch preserved it in the bottom of the inning.
Notre Dame starter Brian Obermann (10-1) got into some trouble in the second, allowing three runs on four hits.
But Notre Dame responded in the top of the third with four runs. The Hawks committed three errors in the inning as the Bulldogs sent nine batters to the plate and eventually took a 6-3 lead.
Notre Dame added four more runs in the fourth on three more hits and an error to claim a 10-3 advantage.
Notre Dame scored one more in the sixth, while Valley Park scored single runs in the sixth and seventh.
Of Notre Dame's 11 hits, four of them -- including Eftink's homer -- would've cleared Notre Dame's fence. Wencewicz, Matt Bollinger and Scott Reinagel each pegged pitches to the Simmons Field fence.
"We brought our bats today," Neff said. "All nine of us. In every game we've got production from our No. 1 and No. 2 hitters, we've been unstoppable."
Against Valley Park, leadoff hitter Wencewicz and No. 2 batter Nathan Essner combined to go 4-for-9 with three runs scored.
Valley Park also hit the ball well. The Hawks came into the contest with a team batting average of .370 and they hit Obermann as well as any team has this season. Obermann, who was lifted for Eftink in the seventh, allowed four earned runs on nine hits and a walk in six innings of work.
But the errors and lack of control by Leuthauser doomed Valley Park's chances.
"The whole mystique of being at state might have something to do with it," said Hawks coach Brent Gregston. "Both teams hit the ball hard, but Notre Dame caught it and we didn't. I mean, Notre Dame's out there making diving catches. They're a good ballclub.
"And we have a better pitcher than what we saw today. He came out in the first overthrowing his curveball and couldn't get it over. His emotions just took over."
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