By Garth Shanklin
Sports Editor

The Milford Eagles baseball team entered their regional semifinal matchup with the Bellefontaine Chieftains May 26 at the University of Cincinnati with a shot at state on the line.
After it appeared the squad would roll to a victory, thanks in large part to a 10-0 lead after three innings, Milford had to withstand a furious Bellefontaine rally and 75-minute rain delay before exploding for a 19-9 win on a wild and wet day at Marge Schott Stadium.
Let’s start at the very beginning. Wes Reid began the bottom of the first inning by drilling a single on the first pitch of his at-bat. One out later, Brad Hall drew a walk. Both runners then stole a base, with Reid scoring Milford’s first run on a fielder’s choice that allowed catcher Sam Dobrowolski to reach base. Keith Carter singled, scoring Hall, and Dobrowolski scored on an error, making it 3-0 Milford with one out in the first.
The Eagles weren’t done. Chase Witte bounced a ball to shortstop that should have ended the inning. Instead, it was bobbled and Witte reached base. He and Carter would score one batter later when Nate Liles lined a ball over the head of the left fielder, who took a few steps in before attempting to track down the line drive.
Milford would total five runs on three hits and two errors in the inning, good for a 5-0 lead after one.
Reid started off the second inning with a base hit. He moved to scoring position with a stolen base, his second in two innings, and scored on a triple by Hall to make it 6-0 Eagles. Hall would score on a bunt by Carter for Milford’s seventh run.
The Eagles scored three more runs in the third. Witte drew a walk and stole second, followed by a shallow pop off the bat of Liles that dropped for a base hit. After a wild pitch moved Liles to second, Evan Baugh drove in the Eagles’ eighth run with a groundout to the shortstop. The Eagles scored their ninth run on a sac fly by Reid and their 10th on an RBI base-hit by Hall.
That sent the game to the fourth inning, and things began to get interesting. For starters, Bellefontaine’s offense woke up. The Chieftains scored three runs in the frame, the first of which scored when a line drive skipped off the glove of an Eagle outfielder, allowing a runner to score from second.
Shortly after the Eagles ended the inning, lightening cleared the field and a downpour began. Concourses and dugouts flooded, skies darkened and fans scurried for cover. The delay itself lasted for 75 minutes, and Milford picked up right where they left off on offense when it ended.
Carter led off the inning with a walk. Hayden Sluder singled, putting two runners on with no outs. Witte’s sacrifice bunt moved the runners up a base, allowing Carter to score on a wild pitch, pushing Milford’s lead to 11-3. Liles singled, making it 12-3 Milford, before back-to-back popups ended the inning.
Tyler Smith took over on the mound for the Eagles after the delay and things did not go well for him. A leadoff single moved to third base after back-to-back wild pitches. Another batter drew a walk, right in front of a base hit that scored Bellefontaine’s fourth run. By the time the fourth inning ended, the Chieftains had scored six runs and pulled to within three at 12-9.
Smith pitched one-third of an inning, allowing six runs, of which four were earned, on four hits and two walks. Kyle Minton pitched the remaining two-thirds of an inning for the Eagles.
The Eagles’ half of the fifth inning started with a triple by Kirk. Three batters later, Sluder came to the plate with two runners on and two outs. He promptly scored both runners with a base hit, giving Milford a 14-9 lead.
Sluder moved to third on a throwing error, then scored on a Witte single. Witte then stole second and crossed the plate on a base hit by Liles that made it 16-9 Milford. Baugh scored Witte with a single then moved to third on a wild pitch. Reid singles in Baugh to make it 18-9 Milford, bringing up Kirk.
Kirk hit a shallow fly ball to right field that was dropped by the Bellefontaine outfielder, scoring Milford’s 19th run and triggering the 10-run rule.
Several Eagles collected multi-hit games. Eight of the nine starters had at least one hit, with Liles’ four hits in four at-bats leading the team. Liles also drove in four runs for the Eagles and scored twice. Reid picked up three hits, scored three runs and drove in a pair. He also stole three bases. Hall and Sluder had two hits each while Kirk, Carter, Witte and Baugh each picked up one base hit apiece.
Nathan Kroger picked up the win for Milford, allowing three runs, of which one was earned, on three hits in four innings of work. He walked three Chieftains and did not strike out a batter. Minton picked up a save for the Eagles, as the tying run was at the plate when he entered the game.
One day later, Milford returned to UC for a rematch with the La Salle Lancers, a team Milford defeated 1-0 earlier in the season. La Salle got revenge in this game, defeating Milford 7-1 to end the Eagles’ season at 28-3.