Park Hill South baseball displayed several strengths in its 9-2 rivalry victory against Park Hill on Tuesday, May 6.
Park Hill South head coach Josh Walker was impressed with how his team handled their emotions to earn the victory after getting swept by their rivals last year. It all started on the defensive side with starting pitcher Quinton Chindamo alongside good baserunning and timely hitting.
The Panthers opened up an early 3-0 lead when a passed ball allowed Trenton Parker to score, setting up a big opportunity for Sterling Lewallen. The senior designated hitter did his job, hitting a 2-RBI single.
The top of the Park Hill batting order got the visitors on the board in the third inning. Dante Dixon hit a single to left field before Caelin Bradford stepped forward with a two-out double to center field.
The Panthers evaded any further damage in the third as they got length from Chindamo’s start on the mound. The senior finished what he started, striking out seven batters in seven innings while giving up just one earned run.
“He was a little amped up in the first inning,” Walker said. “But once we got those three runs, he just settled right in and did a great job. The defense backed him up; when you have a defense like that, it makes it a lot easier to throw.”
In addition to a rock-solid defense most of the night, Chindamo was provided with more insurance in the form of run support after the Panthers piled on a 6-run fourth inning. With runners on the corners, innovative baserunning from South psyched out the Park Hill infield as Cooper McQueen stole home plate while Gio Fatino advanced into scoring position.
Parker scored Fatino with a single before Carson Bjorn hit a 2-RBI double to deep left-center field. The Panthers added two more later in the inning after capitalizing on an error before walking in another.
Park Hill finally escaped the fourth inning trailing 9-1, but stranded a leadoff single in the fifth and were sent down in order in the sixth. The Trojans finally got another run in the seventh on a ground ball from sophomore Joseph Martorana, but it was far too little.
After the victory against Park Hill, the Park Hill South pitching staff had an impressive earned run average of 2.9. The Panthers’ rotation has managed to stay healthy this year, helping Park Hill South to a 19-10 record on the verge of the second 20-win season since 2008, entering the final week of the regular season.
“We’ve done some really good things,” Walker said. “We’re playing hard, getting with it. We’re running the bases really well, we did that tonight. As long as we run the bases hard, play good defense and pitch well, our hitting will keep us in it.”
Park Hill South and Park Hill are hoping to finish the season strong and land as high of a seed as possible in a difficult Class 6 District 8 that includes three teams ranked in the top 10 in the state.