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A PRE-HOLIDAY WEEK AND WEEKEND AWAITS THE WILDCATS, AS REGIONAL PLAY IS ALREADY UPON US.

By Eddie Dwyer, 05/21/12, 12:00AM EDT

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TWO OF THE WEST SIDE’S BEST WILL TAKE THEIR GAMES TO CASE WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY, AS SAINT IGNATIUS AND WESTLAKE MEET IN A DIVISION I REGIONAL SEMIFINAL BASEBALL GAME ON THURSDAY. SEE THE CORNER’S PREVIEW BELOW.

****COACH CHUCK KYLE’S VARSITY TRACK AND FIELD TEAM, COMING OFF ANOTHER CLASSIC PERFORMANCE AT THE LAKEWOOD DISTRICT, WILL TAKE AN EXPERIENCED, DEEP AND TALENTED CONTINGENT INTO THE ALWAYS DEMANDING AMHERST REGIONAL. COMPETITON BEGINS ON WEDNESDAY AT 4 P.M., AND RESUMES ON FRIDAY AT 4. *FOR AN OUTLOOK ON THE WILDCATS AND THEIR REGIONAL QUALIFIERS, SEE THE CORNER’S STORY ON THE LAKEWOOD DISTRICT, WHICH WAS POSTED ON FRIDAY NIGHT (5-18).

****AS WE REPORTED ON SATURDAY (SEE RECAP STORY FROM 5-19), THE WILDCATS’ VARSITY LACROSSE TEAM, WHICH SEEMS TO BE PLAYING AT THE TOP OF ITS GAME, WILL BE ON THE ROAD WEDNESDAY NIGHT TO FACE MASSILLON JACKSON IN THE OHSLA PLAYOFF ROUND OF 16. THE FACEOFF IS SCHEDULED FOR 7:30 P.M.

****AND THE VARSITY VOLLEYBALL TEAM (19-7), FRESH OFF 3-0 REGIONAL-TOURNAMENT VICTORIES OVER STOW AND JACKSON, IS SCHEDULED TO TRAVEL TO CINCINNATI ARCHBISHOP MOELLER ON SATURDAY FOR A STATE QUARTERFINAL MATCHUP WITH LAKOTA WEST AT 1:30 P.M.

BY EDDIE DWYER, COPYRIGHT MAY 2012

Whether it is Little League, high school, the long bus trips in the minors or one of the grand cathedrals where fans gather to root on and even worship their major-league idols, hope always springs eternal in the great game of baseball.

At Saint Ignatius and Westlake high schools, that hope has become more of an expectation.

The baseball faithful on West 30th and Lorain Avenue in Cleveland and Hilliard Boulevard in Westlake anticipate every May that their teams will make a strong bid in the OHSAA postseason tournament.

Westlake (21-6), under the direction of Hall of Fame head coach Jeff Short, has won well over 300 games, has advanced to district play 12 times in the past 16 seasons, has 16 winning seasons in the past 18 years and will be making its third regional appearance since 1996 when it faces Saint Ignatius in a Division I semifinal on Thursday at Case Western Reserve University. The first pitch from Nobby’s Ballpark on the campus of CWRU will be 5 p.m.

Under the guidance of head coach Brad Ganor, the Wildcats are 20-9 this spring and have compiled a record of 170-58 during Coach Ganor’s eight seasons at the helm. Saint Ignatius has made 10 state final-four appearances, including a school record three in a row under Coach Ganor (2007-08-09). Brad was an assistant coach on the Wildcats’ 2002 state-championship team. The ‘Cats were also state runners-up in 2000 and 2008.

Coach Short, a man this corner had the privilege to report on during my nearly four decades at The Plain Dealer and learned a great deal from, is retiring at the end of this season.

Both the Demons and the Wildcats advanced to Thursday’s regional semifinal in dramatic fashion.

In eliminating the state’s fifth-ranked Avon Eagles, 1-0, in the Lorain district final, 18th-ranked Westlake rode the four-hit pitching of right-hander Kevin Neumann and Neumann’s RBI single in the top of the first inning to the “upset.” Neumann pitched out of a bases-loaded situation in the bottom of the first and, with runners on the corners, ended the game with his eighth strikeout. Demons third baseman Andy Haders had three hits and Neumann was the recipient of an outstanding defensive play by second baseman Andrew Dunn in the bottom of the seventh. Not bad for a club that stood 4-4 at one point this season.

Saint Ignatius, which will take a six-game winning streak into regional play, turned back a gritty North Royalton team, 3-2, in the Strongsville district championship game.

In what go down as two of the most memorable plays in the Wildcats’ rich athletic history, senior center fielder and tri-captain Tim McCoy and senior right fielder Dan Oaklief threw runners out at the plate in the bottom of the seventh. Senior catcher Ralph Lucarelli did a superb job of catching the throws, holding his position at the dish and applying the tags.

A double by gifted junior second baseman Dan Rowbottom, an RBI sacrifice fly by McCoy, a run-scoring single by Oaklief and a suicide-squeeze bunt by senior shortstop and tri-captain Mike Ruffing fueled Saint Ignatius’ offense.

SIBN: It seems like just yesterday that John Fanta ’13 was breaking in on the baseball scene as one of Saint Ignatius’ Student Broadcasters for the 2010 season opener between the ‘Cats and the Demons at Westlake. Two years later, “I’ll Have Another” Fanta, who boldly predicts his horse will gallop to the Triple Crown at Belmont, will be the lead voice for the SIBN’s live broadcast of Thursday’s regional semifinal from CWRU.

ANOTHER WILD ONE: The winner of the Saint Ignatius-Westlake game returns to Case Western Reserve on Friday for the 5 p.m. regional championship game and the right to advance to the state final four. Friday’s opponent will be either Ohio’s sixth-ranked Ashland Arrows (22-4) or the Eagles from Oregon Clay (12-14). Ashland and Clay will play their Thursday semifinal at Bowling Green State University.

In adding their name to last week’s storied comebacks, the Ashland Arrows, trailing 8-1 in the fifth inning, scored 10 unanswered runs and came away with an 11-8 district-final victory over the Maumee Panthers (18-10). Maumee opened the door for the comeback by issuing 12 walks and three hit batsmen.

ROUNDING THE CORNER AND HEADING HOME.