Ogles throws gem, Crosnoe walks it off for Cape Central

After what has been a rough stretch for the Cape Central Tigers, they picked up a massive 1-0 win over the Seckman Jaguars on Wednesday at Cape Central High School.

The Tigers got a gutsy performance out of freshman Chapman Ogles who went 6 and a third innings allowing no runs on 6 hits.

“Just a fantastic job by Chapman Ogles,” Tigers coach Justin Lieser said. “He was around the zone all day and threw whatever he wanted in any count and kept them off balance. Credit to our pitching coach Cooper Crosnoe for calling a great game. It’s been kind of a tough stretch for us so hopefully, this leads to something good.”

Both Ogles and Seckman pitcher Zach Walters were effective as Walters went 6 and two-thirds innings before giving the ball up to Jake Appleton in the bottom of the 7th.

“(Walters) had us off balance,” Lieser said. “We really didn’t look comfortable at the plate all day.”

The Tigers' offense had squandered scoring opportunities in the first 6 innings, but when Morgan Diamond reached base in the bottom of the 7th, they wouldn’t miss another chance.

Diamond was able to move up to second on a passed ball and just two pitches later Diamond would advance to third on another passed ball.

“It was solid base running,” Lieser said. “We talked about just doing one thing, just do your job and don’t try to do too much.”

With two outs and Diamond standing at third, catcher Carter Crosnoe stepped into the box with a chance to send the Tiger fans home happy.

“I was sitting fastball,” Crosnoe said. “If he flipped anything I was just going to sit back on it and get my pitch.”

Crosnoe got exactly what he was looking for, a first-pitch fastball that he lined to the shortstop.

Off the bat, it looked routine and that we would be heading to extras, but the shortstop botched the line drive, allowing Diamond to score the game-winning run.

“(Carter) is so locked in and in the moment,” Lieser said. “He’s one of the few guys on the team that I don’t have to preach that to as far as just being in the moment and being locked in.”

Ogles was able to keep the Tigers in the game despite the fact it was just his second varsity start.

“It means a lot,” Ogles said. “It was just my second varsity start so I was pretty nervous today, but I went out there and the team made plays.”

Crosnoe said Ogles’ ability to control all of his pitches made him effective for the Tigers in the win.

“His offspeed has been there all year,” Crosnoe said. “He was spotting it up and there’s nothing better than that.”

Getting the win on the mound for the Tigers was Morgan Lincoln who entered in relief of Ogles with 1-out in the 7th inning.

“We were comfortable with (Morgan) in that role,” Lieser said. “He did a phenomenal job.”

Cape Central (4-7) will return to action at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 11 when the Tigers host the Jackson Indians at Cape Central High School.

“We have some off time here but we’re not going to reflect too much on this,” Lieser said. “It’s already in the past because we know our schedule and the SEMO Conference is not going to be easy. You just have to take it one day at a time.”