ST. VINCENT REIGNS IN SEMIS

COLUMBIA, Mo. -- St. Vincent was on the verge of playing in another state championship game and there sat the Indians in the dugout playing cards.

It was an anticlimactic way to win a state semifinal game, but the St. Vincent Indians will take it.

The defending 1A state champion Indians defeated Community R-VI 6-2 Wednesday in a game that was stopped after the fifth inning because of rain.

St. Vincent (18-11) will take on the winner of the Jasper-Marion C. Early semifinal in the state championship game at 8 p.m. The other semifinal game was pushed back until 8 a.m. today.

"We would've liked to played and completed the game," said St. Vincent coach Rick Wibbenmeyer. "But what can you do? We were fortunate to get five innings."

The rain actually did the Indians a favor.

The Trojans (19-7) have established themselves as a late-inning team this year, posting several come-back wins. And it appeared that they were just starting to figure out starting pitcher Derek Kutz.

"That was our biggest reservation about this game being called off," Community coach Jim Brink said. "We've done our biggest damage the last three weeks in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings.

"They were disappointed. It's tough to have your run at a state championship end after five innings because of rain."

St. Vincent's top five batters did all the damage.

Leadoff batter Adam Bockman, who went 4-for-4 in last year's state championship game, went 2-for-2 with three runs scored. Kutz went 3-for-3 with two RBIs and two runs. Ryan Brown went 1-for-3 with two RBIs. St. Vincent's six through nine batters went 0-for-7.

The Indians jumped on top early.

Bockman led off the bottom of the first with a single to left. Derek Kutz followed with a single and Tyler Wengert drove home Bockman with a hit up the middle.

After Brandon Carroll popped out to second, Brown delivered a double to the rightcenter field gap to drive home two for a 3-0 lead.

The Indians added another run in the second inning when Bockman ripped a two-out double to leftcenter and Kutz followed with an RBI single.

"They were everything I heard about and read about," Brink said, referring to St. Vincent. "I quite frankly think they are the team to beat. And I was happy with the way we played."

Dusty Cissell, St. Vincent's first baseman, saved a run in the top of the third when he made a diving play to his right with runners at first and second.

Community cut its deficit in half in the top of the fifth when No. 3 hitter Scott Schutte ripped an 0-2 pitch on the ground just underneath Kutz's glove with the bases loaded. Inches from being a double play, it was instead a two-run single and it ended the Indians' Simmons Field shutout streak at 16 innings.

St. Vincent answered with two more in the bottom of the fifth. Bockman was hit by a pitch and stole second. He was singled home by Kutz, who later scored on a sacrifice fly by Carroll.

"I was glad to get to play the bottom of the fifth and answer their two runs," Wibbenmeyer said. "Our kids did a good job and battled."

Kutz, who mowed down the Trojans with ease in the first two innings, struggled a bit once the rain started falling. But he battled and picked up the win. He allowed two runs, both earned, on six hits and three walks while striking out four.

Schutte allowed six runs on seven hits and one walk. He struck out two.