Ace Paces Richard's Championship Triumph
June 16, 2018
By Jason Schmitt
Special for Second Half
EAST LANSING – He’d seen a dropped third strike 100 times before Saturday’s championship game.
Excuse Riverview Gabriel Richard’s Matthew Silka for getting caught up in the moment.
With two outs in the seventh inning, the junior got a swinging third strike to seemingly clinch his team’s first MHSAA baseball title. But his biting breaking ball ended up in the dirt – so he looked at the catcher, then glanced at first. Finally, he turned and looked at his second baseman, who was charging toward him to celebrate.
At that moment, he figured it out. His team had just won the Division 3 championship, defeating reigning champ Madison Heights Bishop Foley, 3-0.
“I was so confused,” said Silka, smiling with a championship medal hanging from his neck. “That’s not an ideal way to end the game, because I’m not sure if we won or not. I was looking at the first base ump to see if he was going to call him out or not. We were all waiting for someone to say something.”
The game-ending strikeout was his seventh of the game, one he dominated from start to finish. Silka, a junior, allowed just one hit, that coming in the seventh inning. Prior to that single, he was on his way to becoming the first pitcher to toss a complete-game no hitter in MHSAA Finals history.
Instead, he became just the fifth pitcher in Finals history to allow just one hit in a complete game.
“I was trying to keep (the ball) to the corners, and not make too many mistakes and leave the ball over the heart of the plate,” Silka said. “I was just trying to throw strikes and help my teammates out.”
His teammates helped him out early on, scoring a run in the second, third and fourth innings to stake him to a 3-0 advantage.
The Pioneers scored their first run unconventionally. Leadoff batter Hayden Burke reached on a dropped third strike. The junior then moved over to second base on a walk to fellow junior Frank Klamerus. Those two advanced to second and third thanks to a pair of wild pitches. Burke then scored on a fielder’s choice by junior Hayden Flynn to make it 1-0.
In the third inning, Richard pieced together three singles – the last by Flynn plated junior Niko Maloney. In the fourth inning, the Pioneers used a walk, sacrifice bunt and an RBI-single by sophomore David Zubor to cap off their scoring, giving Silka more than he needed to get the job done.
“I think momentum is one of the biggest parts of the game,” Silka said. “That was really huge for us to get out in front. I knew once we had a lead and we got rolling, it was going to be a lot easier to pitch.”
Richard coach Mike Magier said Silka’s success was due to his ability to keep the Ventures off balance.
“He went through the lineup one time and he gained a little confidence, and he could use his secondary pitches a little bit more,” Magier said. “(Silka) has been a workhorse for us. He’s really been a competitor.
“He’s been our ace. He’s pitched against all our tough teams.”
Bishop Foley (19-18-1) could muster just one hit – from sophomore Liam Pollock to lead off the seventh inning.
“That’s baseball,” Foley coach Tim McEvoy said. “We ran into a stud pitcher who threw strikes. He kept us off balance, and we weren’t able to get out in front of his fastball. That was the main issue.
“I want to congratulate their coaching staff. They have a great staff and a great pitcher.”
For Richard (29-3), this could be just a taste of what’s to come next year. There are no seniors on the roster, so everyone should be back for another title run in 2019.
“I guess it’s kind of unusual,” said Magier, talking about a lack of seniors on his roster. “That (junior) class, as soon as they came in in ninth grade, we had three or four guys come up on varsity and we knew we had a pretty good class there.
“It takes a lot to win a state championship, so we won’t take it for granted. We’re going to enjoy this one, and hopefully next year we can do the same.”
VIDEO: Gabriel Richard pitcher Matthew Silka finishes his seventh strikeout, which wrapped up the 3-0 win over the Ventures.
PHOTOS: (Top) Gabriel Richard ace Matthew Silka makes his move toward the plate Saturday. (Middle) A Pioneers runner tries to slide in under the tag of Bishop Foley catcher Mason Minzey.
Flint Powers Catholic, Spring Lake End Long Waits to Reach Season Finale
By
Scott DeCamp
Special for MHSAA.com
June 14, 2024
EAST LANSING – After his eighth-inning, game-winning hit to finish Flint Powers Catholic’s Division 2 Semifinal win Friday, Chargers senior Gavin Darling gave away the secret to how 42-year head coach Tom Dutkowski stays so young and energetic.
“That dude works out more than probably half the team, honestly,” Darling said. “He’s a great guy, and we just want to do it for him as well.”
What top-ranked Flint Powers is aiming to do is capture a state baseball championship. Powers has that chance after Darling’s walk-off single to deep left field scored Eli Sturgess for a 4-3 victory over Trenton at Michigan State University’s McLane Stadium.
Powers (36-6) will face Spring Lake (32-9) in Saturday’s 5 p.m. Final. The Chargers are seeking their first Finals title since 1980, and first under Dutkowski’s tutelage.
“We want to win for him, man. It’s not only for us, but it’s for him,” Darling said. “He’s been working hard just like we have.”
Powers and pitcher Grant Garman cruised through the first four innings Friday, Garman carrying a perfect game as the Chargers built a 3-0 lead.
Trenton (30-11-1) began to make Powers work for it in the fifth. The Trojans collected five hits and scored three runs in the inning, keyed by Carson Boike’s two-run single, to knot the score at 3.
The tie remained until the bottom of the eighth inning, when Darling came to the plate with one out and the bases loaded. Powers’ cleanup hitter saw a pitch he could drive, and the rest is history.
“Just (looking for) a pitch to hit, man. They were playing in, so I just had to go for it. I don’t care if it’s a bloop single or a shot like that, I’ve just got to do what I’ve got to do,” Darling said. “(It felt) pretty good to know that I had a guy on third that either way, if it’s caught, he’s tagging and we win the game.
“It’s an unreal feeling, man. These guys are my family, and I can’t thank them enough. They have my back just like I have theirs, and I can’t thank them enough.”
Garman allowed three earned runs on six hits with 10 strikeouts and one walk in five innings. Isaac Sturgess picked up the win in relief, not allowing a hit or run with four strikeouts and one walk over three innings.
Garman led the Powers offense with three hits, while Darling had a pair of RBIs.
Caleb Kidd finished with two hits to pace Trenton. Kidd got the start and worked four innings, allowing three earned runs on five hits with five strikeouts and three walks in four innings. Joel Mator took the loss in relief for the Trojans, surrendering one earned run on three hits with five strikeouts and five walks in 3 1/3 innings.
“I can’t say enough about the fight that was in them,” Trenton coach Todd Szalka said. “He had a shutout (perfect game), we’re going into the top of the fifth, he’s throwing a no-hitter, and then, all of a sudden, we challenge them in the dugout and we come away with five hits in the fifth inning. I mean, that’s almost unheard of, especially against a good pitcher like (Grant) Garman.
“No. 1 team in the state, you’re down 3-0, stakes are on the line, you’re looking at your last nine outs and our kids just continued to fight and went into extra innings. They got the big play when they needed it, and we had gotten the big play the last three games with walk-offs. I’m really proud of the way we came out today.”
Dutkowski instructed Darling to be “short to the ball” on his game-winning hit. The coach was very happy for the player, who “works as hard as anybody.”
Dutkowski believes his team is plenty battle-tested, too, competing in the Saginaw Valley League.
“The Saginaw Valley League is a gauntlet, especially for a school like Powers (as) the smallest school,” he said. “Not that we feel bad about that because we’ve got great players this year, but it is tough.
“ … We beat Bay City Western two out of three this year, and we beat Northville in the Flint Champions Tournament. Neither team was pitching their best, but we beat them. Yeah, we’re battle-tested.”
Dutkowski said that in his younger years, he might have been jumping up and down in the third-base coach’s box during the walk-off play.
On Friday, he said he stayed planted and wanted to make sure Eli Sturgess was tagging at third in case Darling’s deep fly ball was caught.
“I used to be what you’d call an athlete. I used to do all the histrionics, but now my job is to kind of keep guys steady, you know – get them back to neutral as soon as possible,” Dutkowski said.
“I have an ankle-foot orthotic. I am drop foot. I had fusion surgery about 19 months ago on L-4/L-5. No, I’m a wreck. I have this carbon fiber thing,” he said as he pointed to his lower right leg, “that keeps me upright. I’m retired now, so I work out.”
Spring Lake 5, Richland Gull Lake 2
“Next pitch” has been a theme for the Spring Lake baseball team during its run to the Finals.
Of course, when you have Zane Stahl throwing the pitches, that always helps.
The 6-foot-6 Louisville commit scattered five hits and pitched to contact in powering Spring Lake to a 5-2 victory.
On Saturday, Spring Lake will be making its first Finals appearance since 1995 and third overall. The Lakers got there Friday in large part because of Stahl, the defense behind him, and timely hitting.
Stahl, a right-handed junior, struck out four, walked four, and allowed two earned runs in the complete-game effort.
“(The defense) has been incredible. I’ve been able to make my pitch,” Stahl said. “You know, it’s not always about strikeouts; it’s about making the pitch and getting a ground ball. I mean, they’ve been able to make the routine plays that they’re supposed to and even make them outside of that, so it’s been great.”
Stahl helped his own cause, too. He finished 2-for-3 at the plate with two RBIs. Oliver Smies doubled twice for Spring Lake, while Gabe Trask had two hits for the Lakers, who have won 19 of their last 20 games.
Spring Lake took a 1-0 lead in the first inning and created separation with four runs in the fifth inning on four hits.
“Somebody else always seemed to pick us up at the right time. We got a couple of nice ground-ball double plays, so some things have fallen into place for us but I’m also a believer, sometimes you make your own luck,” Spring Lake coach Bill Core said. “What we’ve been impressed with so much is somebody always seems to pick up their teammate or somebody’s been coming through with a big play at the right time.
“We’re not a bunch of superstars, but everybody has a role and we’ve got a different hero (each game).”
Gull Lake (26-12) showed life in the later innings, scoring a run on two hits in the sixth and another run on two more hits in the seventh.
Western Michigan University commit Julian Harris took the pitching loss for the Blue Devils. The right-hander allowed three runs (two earned) on five hits with eight strikeouts and one walk in four innings.
“When you get to the final four, no one’s weak, especially against a good arm like (Stahl’s) – you’re scratching and clawing for every run that you get,” Gull Lake coach Reggie Walters said. “If you tie that ballgame up, it just changes the feel of things instead of chasing.
“We wanted to wear (Stahl) down and he started to show that in the sixth and the seventh, but he threw a great game. … It was like, ‘Man, if we would have started it one inning earlier, you don’t know where you’re going to end up.’”
PHOTOS (Top) Flint Powers Catholic's Eli Sturgess (3) crosses the plate for the winning run during his team's Semifinal victory Friday at McLane Stadium. (Middle) Spring Lake’s Gabe Trask drives a pitch.