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June 3, 2009

3A SECTIONAL: Pirates win behind Williams' hat trick

Pitcher scores third win of postseason for C-town

BY DANIEL ALLAR

SELLERSBURG — Wins required of Charlestown to win its first sectional title since 1999 — three.

Wins recorded by Pirates ace Bryan Williams — three.

A day after pitching five solid innings in the Pirates' semifinal victory over Silver Creek, Williams was called upon to relieve struggling teammate Cameron Metzger with his team down 6-3 and two Salem runners on base with nobody out in the fifth inning.

Williams promptly slammed the door on that rally and held Salem scoreless the rest of the way, allowing his team to come back and post a 7-6 victory over the Lions in eight innings in the final of the Class 3A Silver Creek Sectional.

Williams said his fatigued arm rose to the occasion.

“At first it hurt, but once I got out there it went away,” he said. “It felt like I hadn't pitched in a week.”

Williams' performance had his coach, Ricky Romans, singing his praises.

“Bryan Williams is unbelievable,” Romans said. “Bryan told me yesterday, ‘If you need me, I'll be there.’ He is an absolute huge asset to our team.”

Salem forced Williams into action by getting to Metzger early and capitalizing on his four walks and two hit batters.

Metzger surrendered five runs in a first inning that included a three-run home run by Salem sophomore Hayden Burton.

In the bottom of the first, however, Charlestown bounced back to score three runs to cut the deficit to 5-3.

Still, the Pirates found themselves in their first real dogfight of the sectional against Salem starter Alex Potter, a pitcher who had already beaten them earlier in the season.

“This has kind of been our kryptonite all year,” said Romans. “Potter's had our number.”

Potter would indeed bounce back after the first inning, holding the Pirates scoreless for three innings while his team tacked on another run in the third to make the lead 6-3 heading into the bottom of the fifth.

That's when Metzger, after being replaced by Williams on the mound in the top of the frame, hit a two-run blast to left to cut the lead to a single run.

Then in the bottom of the sixth, Chad Brady led off with a solo shot to center after striking out in his first two trips to the plate.

Romans said the homer was the result of a simple mental adjustment.

“He questioned his ability in the first two at-bats, then went up there in the third one with confidence,” Romans said. “And that's what it takes.”

Brady’s homer knotted the score at 6-6 and set the stage for Williams' late-inning heroics. However, Charlestown's early deficit may have been larger if not for the stellar defensive play of catcher Damon Vest, who threw out five Lions runners throughout the game.

Romans became so animated while trying to describe the play of his senior catcher that he began fumbling over his words.

“Sorry I’m rambling,” Romans said. “Let me put it this way — he's the best catcher in this area. Period.”

Vest stepped up at the plate as well. With the bases loaded and one out in the bottom of the eighth inning, he drove in the winning run with a line drive that landed just in front of the centerfield fence, sealing the victory and the sectional championship for the Pirates.

Potter pitched all eight innings in his final high school outing, surrendering seven runs on 11 hits with 11 strikeouts, one walk, and three hit batters.

Charlestown will play West Vigo on Saturday at 11 a.m. in the Southridge Regional.



Salem 501 000 00- 6 8 0

Charlestown 300 021 01- 7 11 2



W — Williams. L — Potter; 2B — Walker (S), Thorstad (C); HR — Burton (S), Metzger (C), Brady (C)

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