Thursday's Division I regional-semifinal baseball game between Saint Ignatius and Strongsville will be played in Nobby's Ballpark on the campus of Case Western Reserve University. The first pitch is scheduled for 5 p.m.
The Ohio High School Athletic Association agreed to the site change, which will enable more fans from two Cleveland-area schools the opportunity to support their respective teams. The semifinal was originally slated for Shelby High School at 2 p.m. on Thursday. Shelby is located in Richland County and is a two-hour driving distance from Cleveland.
Friday's 5 p.m. regional championship game will remain at Shelby.
“Well, the No. 1 team in the state,’’ said Wildcats Coach Brad Ganor, when asked to describe the Strongsville Mustangs, who are coached by former Wildcat and Ohio University baseball standout Josh Sorge ’91. Coach Sorge guided the Mustangs to the big-school state championship in 2006.
“I don’t think a lot of people expect us to win this game,’’ Coach Ganor said. “But I kind of like the backs-against-the-wall and us-against-the-world mentality.’’
Led by senior right-handers Ryan Bores and Justin Jamison, and crafty senior southpaw Jason Pascuzzi, Strongsville’s pitching was recently the subject of a cover story by ESPN Rise Magazine. The publication described the Mustangs’ deep and gifted arms as “the state’s most feared pitching staff.’’
The 6-foot-8 power-pitching Jamison is bound for Ohio State on a baseball scholarship, and Bores and Pascuzzi are Ohio University and Cincinnati recruits, respectively.
After facing a two-year diet of Saint Edward’s outstanding junior right-hander Stetson Allie and his consistent speeds of 97-plus mph, and going up against the talented and gritty Tyler Skulina of Walsh Jesuit and Pat Shedlock of University School, Saint Ignatius doesn’t have to “fear’’ anyone.
The Wildcats do, however, have a bundle of respect for Strongsville’s pitching, especially after the skilled and savvy Pascuzzi kept them off-balance all day in the Mustangs’ 6-1, regular-season triumph in late April.
“We know what we’re going to face, they have a pitching staff that can shut you down,’’ Coach Ganor said of Strongsville's team ERA of 1.26. “But, if we’re playing well, we have a staff that can shut people down too.’’
As he has done all season, Coach Ganor will rely on the 1-2 punch of senior right-handers Neil Butara and Luke Farrell.
“I’m happy we’re not driving two hours to play Strongsville,’’ said Ganor, who has led Saint Ignatius to consecutive final four appearances, including a state runner-up finish to Saint Edward last spring. “And I’m happy that we’re playing where our fans can support us and their fans can support them.’’
As Coach Ganor emphasized, when it comes to the site of a game his Wildcats are more than flexible.
Saint Ignatius (23-7), the state’s 14th-ranked team in Division I, has played on 25 different fields this season and has had only one true "home game.''
WILDCATS-MUSTANGS RAINED OUT (Posted on 5/28/09 at 2: 15 p.m.).
Thursday's regional-semifinal baseball game between Saint Ignatius and Strongsville, scheduled for Nobby's Ballpark on the campus of Case Western Reserve University, has been rained out.
The game has been re-scheduled for Friday at 5 p.m. at Nobby's Ballpark.