ASHVILLE – Bloom-Carroll has been the top dog all season and the Bulldogs have never shied away from it.
The Bulldogs are full of talent from top to bottom, and that was evident throughout the regular season as they drove through the Mid-State League Buckeye division and at one point had a winning streak of 19 games.
Bloom-Carroll backed this up with a resounding 9-0 win over Hillsboro on Saturday to win the Division II regional championship at Teays Valley High School.
With the victory, the Bulldogs (27-5) fought for the first time since 2014 a place in the national tournament, in which the Bulldogs also took home the national title.
“It’s been a long season for all of us,” said Jason Vest, who was assistant coach on the 2014 national team. “We really expected to win the district and be in that position last year. The kids were hungry, and we talked about being in that position year-round, so we became hunted all year round. We’ve been good for a while, with coach (Brian) Thacker in front of me, and teams are coming after us, but it’s gearing up for games like today. I cannot put into words how good I feel for our children. “
The Bulldogs will face a team to be determined in a state semi-final at 4 p.m. on Thursday in Akrons Canal Park
Bloom-Carroll broke the game up in the fourth inning by scoring six runs, and junior pitcher Logan Moore was prickly when he knocked out an entire game.
Moore, a left-handed man, felt the nerves as he took the first punch of the game, but he was able to calm down quickly and cruise the rest of the way as he only allowed three hits while punching five.
“I knew I had to throw punches and be the best version of myself as the coach always says,” said Moore. “I had to do the job and do whatever it took, but there was a lot of emotion and nerve in that first inning. It’s just an amazing feeling. “We couldn’t play last year, but we worked tirelessly all season and we all put the work into it and it pays off.”
Despite not being the toughest thrower, Moore, who improved to 9-3 during the season, has dominated his places and upset Hillsboro for the entire game.
“Logan was amazing today,” said Vest. “He was the perfect guy in the perfect situation. Logan mixes three pitches really well, he doesn’t throw hard, but he’s the definition of a pitcher. They didn’t really get him going by the fifth inning. He was calm the whole game and threw three throws for strikes. “
After three goalless innings, the Bulldogs broke play in the fourth inning when they sent 11 thugs to the plate. It started when Josh Moore started the inning with a walk and Joel Winters was singled out after a fly-out. After a strikeout, Beau Wisecarver was finally able to break the ice with an RBI single.
Evan Dozer scored the outfield player’s pick and CJ Carmichael then delivered a huge double from two runs to give the Bulldogs a 3-0 lead. Ayden Anderson then hit a routine ground ball at the first baseman, who bobbled, and the fast Anderson was able to hit the bag with a head-first slide that allowed two more runs over the plate. Anderson eventually scored run six as he sped home with a pass.
Bloom-Carroll added three more runs in the fifth inning, with Wisecarver again coming through with an RBI single, and the Bulldogs scored the other two runs on a wild pitch and a mistake.
Carmichael and Wisecarver both went 2 for 4 with two RBIs to lead the way for the Bulldogs, which ended with seven hits. Nick Feasel, Winters and Dozer also had hits.
“One of our main goals at the beginning of the year was to win a state title and that’s what we focused on,” said Carmichael. Now we have the chance to be in that position and it feels great. “
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