On a night where dozens of Park Hill baseball alumni returned to their old stomping grounds for one of the final contests on the program’s longtime natural surface home field, it was Park Hill South who emerged victorious on May 1.
Runs were a premium all night long, but Park Hill South senior first baseman Carson Bjorn put his barrel on a 2-1 pitch, driving it over the left-field fence in the sixth inning. After trailing 1-0, Bjorn’s swing suddenly put the Panthers ahead 2-1 with just six outs from a big rivalry win.
Panther wins at Park Hill have been hard to come by over recent years, losing their previous three trips across the district after an April 2022 triumph. While the Panthers faced their fair share of struggles at the plate last Friday, Bjorn’s stroke to left quickly changed the energy.
Bjorn watched the first two pitches of the at-bat miss for balls before fouling off a pitch. Then came the game-changing play.
“It was kind of almost a sitting slider for the next pitch, I ended up getting a fastball over the middle and didn’t miss it,” Bjorn said. “I thought it was gone off the bat for sure.”
Carson Bjorn is mobbed by teammates after hitting a go-ahead homer on May 1.
Park Hill South’s dugout immediately became upbeat, knowing exactly what was at stake. Looking to close the game out, the Panthers only grew in confidence after a stellar start for pitcher Willard Schau.
Willard Schau pitched the complete game for the Panthers.
Schau tossed one of the best games of his season, going the distance with the help of his defense. The senior completed the game in 89 pitches with four strikeouts, giving up a single run on six hits and no walks.
“They’re a good team,” Shau said of Park Hill. “They put bat on ball really well. I was just trying to paint the corners today, and I got soft contact, so it worked.”
It was a much different outcome this time around. Schau last faced Park Hill in a run-rule defeat last season, but after reviewing tape, he made sure to attack the zone more rather than playing it safe.
Park Hill’s lone run came in the fourth inning, when a leadoff double from Logan Conley eventually scored on a sacrifice fly to left field.
Ian Springer struck out 12 batters in Park Hill’s home defeat to Park Hill South on May 1.
While South’s offense was silent outside of Bjorn’s homer, much of that could be attributed to their opposition. Park Hill was error-free while getting a quality start from Ian Springer, who kept South off balance throughout his electric performance on the mound with 12 strikeouts in seven innings, also hitting a sac fly for Park Hill’s go-ahead run.
“Ian (Springer) threw a heck of a game, and Will (Schau) matched him pitch for pitch,” Walker said. “You’ve got two guys that fill up the strike zone and throw strikes. You’ve got to put the ball in play in high school ball. If you put the ball in play, you’ve got a good chance to win.”
Springer did make some mistakes, which included hitting four batters and letting a pitch catch too much of the plate against Bjorn. After hitting the first homer of his Panther career the previous week, Bjorn picked a timely moment to hammer his second homer.
Carson Bjorn went 1-for-3 with his second career home run, sparking Park Hill South’s offense.
“He’s got the power, of course,” Walker said of Bjorn, who became the program’s career doubles leader last month, breaking a record previously set by Brian Asbill more than two decades ago. “What a big time for it. He’s got the pop. Just waiting for it, and thank goodness he had one.”
The Panthers still had work to do, but Schau and the Panthers finished out a strong defensive battle.
Park Hill reached safely with an error to start the bottom of the sixth. After a sacrifice bunt moved the tying run into scoring position with one out, junior right fielder Brody Cunningham snagged a pop fly to shallow right, and with the baserunner moving on contact, a simple throw to second easily doubled up the Trojans to extinguish the danger.
Schau closed out what he started in the seventh, working around a one-out single. Back-to-back strikeouts sealed the Panthers’ second conference win this season.
“Out there in the seventh, I just kind of blacked out, to be honest,” Schau said. “I was just trying to put it over the plate. This is a big win, and it was a blast.”
The victory ended a three-game losing skid. They are 13-11 overall and 1-2 in conference play.
“We were on a little bit of a lull,” Walker said. “Now, hopefully, we get going and can turn this thing where we need to and keep it going for districts.”
South concludes its home schedule with matchups against North Kansas City (May 8) and Park Hill (May 13).
The Future of Park Hill Baseball
The Park Hill baseball team’s Legacy Night signaled the final days of its longtime all-natural baseball field, which has been around since the 1950s.
Over the coming months, the field will become a construction zone as the initial phase of the Park Hill High School replacement project.
The team is expected to debut its new field next spring. The new baseball complex is expected to include custom turf, restrooms, parking lots, storage and improved traffic flow to the east of Gerner Early Education Center, located on the other side of the football stadium.
Greg Reynolds waves to the crowd before tossing the first pitch on May 1.
The Trojans welcomed back as many as three dozen alumni from its baseball program, including recent graduates and graduates from as far back as the class of 1972.
Greg Reynolds tossed the honorary first pitch to Bill Sobbe, a connection between two former Park Hill baseball coaches and cornerstones in the Trojans’ athletic department over the years.
A large crowd for the rivalry matchup provided even more motivation between the two district rivals.
While the Trojans could potentially host postseason games, Park Hill’s final regular-season game on their longtime field is slated for May 11, when they host Oak Park.
Dozens of Park Hill baseball alumni of various generations returned for Legacy Night before the field is relocated.