Notre Dame reaches Class 3 semifinals with win against Pacific

PACIFIC -- Notre Dame had the edge in experience and statistics heading into the Class 3 state quarterfinal Thursday at Pacific. The Bulldogs just couldn't convince Pacific of that fact until the seventh inning.

Notre Dame scored eight times in the top of the seventh to pull away for a 12-2 victory against Pacific.

"The score is no indication of how close it was," Notre Dame coach Jeff Graviett said. "We talked about it with the kids that everyone was 4-0 in the postseason, they've got some sophomores that matured at the right time, and their kid today threw well.

"They gave us a couple of opportunities, and we were close to opening this thing up and we finally did in the end."

Notre Dame clinched its fourth top-four finish in a boys sport this season following state championships for soccer and basketball and a third-place finish in cross country. Notre Dame also had a third-place finish in softball, which Graviett coached.

"It doesn't get old," said Graviett, who has been to three softball final fours in the last four years and will be making his first baseball appearance since 2002 and fourth overall. "You want to keep plugging away and win a state championship."

Graviett has yet to capture one. Several players on his team have titles, including senior Mark Himmelberg, who already has two this year and was on the state title soccer team and runner-up basketball team in his junior year.

CRAIG VONDER HAAR ~ Washington Missourian Austin Greer scored and Colton Young rounded third on his way home during the seventh inning as Trenton St. Cin's two-run single gave Notre Dame a 6-1 lead. The Bulldogs won 12-2 in the Class 3 state quarterfinal.

"There's no better way to end your high school career," Himmelberg said. "Especially in baseball, we weren't expected to do as much as we did in soccer and basketball. To go to state for a fifth time in two years is pretty unbelievable. It's really cool."

The toughest part of the trip for baseball was getting past SEMO Conference rival Dexter in district play. The Bulldogs beat De Soto 3-0 in Himmelberg's one-hitter in the sectional Tuesday. And on Thursday, they came up against a team with six sophomore starters -- including starting pitcher Andrew Reidt -- and a team batting average 50 points lower and team ERA more than 2 runs higher.

Through the first five innings, though, only Ryan Bass generated offense for Notre Dame. He lofted a homer over the 10-foot fence about 310 feet away in left field, and had an RBI single as part of a 3-for-4 day. He scored in both the sixth and seventh innings and had a double off the wall in the seventh.

"Pinch me, I'm still sleeping," said Bass, the goalkeeper for Notre Dame's two soccer titles. "I've been in a little bit of a slump, and I just tried to make contact. The first one, I watched it and it just kept carrying. I thought either he's going to catch it at the wall or it's going to fall over the top."

Notre Dame starter Dylan Drury delivered a pitch during Thursday's quarterfinal game.

Over it went, giving Notre Dame a 1-0 lead in the second inning.

Pacific tied the game in the bottom of the third when Notre Dame starter Dylan Drury was lifted after allowing a single and hit batsman. He had managed to strand the bases loaded in the first inning and left two on in the second, but was living too dangerously for Graviett's liking.

Reliever Colton Young nearly got out of the jam with a fielder's choice to get the lead runner on a bunt and then a fly out, but he threw a wild pitch to score one of the inherited runners.

Young doubled in the top of the fourth, stole third and scored on Bass' basehit to left as Notre Dame reclaimed the lead.

Young then allowed two hits and a sacrifice bunt to open the bottom of the fourth. He struck out No. 2 hitter Ben Dorenkamp; intentionally walked Larry Schimsa, who had two of Pacific's six hits; and then whiffed Marcell Wedlow to end the threat.

Young, who has yet to start a game this season, made his longest relief appearance to get the win. He threw five innings, allowed three hits, struck out seven and yielded only an unearned run in the bottom of the seventh.

"His maturity level is unbelievable on the mound," Graviett said. "He hadn't thrown a lot of pitches this year, but he's the kind of kid who will do whatever we ask of him."

The Bulldogs finally gave Young a little more breathing room in the sixth with two runs. After Aaron Tomaszewski singled, Bass put down a bunt that Reidt fielded but threw low to second base. Jake Pewitt followed with a well-placed bunt that resulted in an infield single. One out later, Himmelberg drew an RBI walk that ended Reidt's day. Against reliever Zach Karl, Drury lifted a sacrifice fly to give Notre Dame a 4-1 lead.

The Bulldogs blew open the game in the seventh. Sophomore Trenton St. Cin had a two-run single in his first varsity at-bat, Bass followed with his double, and Logan Glueck had an RBI double. As Graviett involved several players off his bench, Kyle Brugger had an RBI double and Nick Ostendorf had an RBI single.

"Top to bottom, they have one of the better lineups we saw all year," Pacific coach Jeff Reed said.

Notre Dame finished with 13 hits -- five in the final frame.

"We're one of the four best teams in Missouri, and I'm proud to be a part of it," Young said.

"It's always awesome to go," Himmelberg said of the final four. "But there's more business that needs to be done."

Notre Dame 010 102 8 -- 12 13 1

Pacific 001 000 1 -- 2 6 1

@z_agate_no tab_no indnt_bld ld:WP -- Colton Young, 2-0. LP -- Andrew Reidt. 2B -- Larry Schimsa (P), Ryan Bass (ND), Young (ND), Logan Glueck (ND), Kyle Brugger (ND). HR -- Bass (ND). Multiple hits -- Notre Dame: Bass 3-4, Dylan Drury 2-2; Pacific: Schimsa 2-3. Records -- Pacific 11-13, Notre Dame 19-6.