Jarrett Herrmann admitted to feeling a bit different as he and his Hutchinson Community College teammates watched Saturday’s regular season finale at Allen Community College from the visitors dugout.
That’s because Herrmann, a former Iola High baseball standout, played several high school games at that same field, all from the home dugout.
“I thought I’d be nervous, but I felt pretty comfortable when I got to the plate,” Herrmann said. “It did feel like home there.”
Herrmann’s two-run single in the top of the ninth was one of several key blows Hutch landed in an 11-3 win over the Red Devils.
Allen (20-33) now sets its sights on the postseason, opening the Region VI playoffs Thursday afternoon against Cloud Community College in a best-of-three series. Game 2 will be Friday afternoon in Concordia, as will Game 3, if necessary, on Saturday afternoon.
Friday’s setback was a matter of letting little mistakes turn into big problems, Allen head coach Clint Stoy said.
Allen led 2-0 after three innings, but a dropped third strike and fielding error allowed the Blue Dragons to tie the score in the top of the fifth. A two-run single later in the inning pushed Hutchinson in front for good. Another error allowed the Blue Dragons to stretch their lead to 6-2 in the sixth.
Finally, consecutive hit batters to start the ninth opened the door for Herrmann’s two-run single.
“We gave them a big inning in the fifth,” Stoy said. “You can’t give runs away like that.”
Still, there were bright spots for the Red Devils.
Starting pitcher Saul Bolivar was dazzling over four innings, allowing just one hit, a solo home run from Hutchinson’s Colin Cymbalista in the top of the fourth.
Stoy limited the pitch counts for Bolivar, and the other six pitchers who followed, because of the upcoming playoff series.
“He threw well,” Stoy said.
Allen had chances to build a lead, but could only get a 1-0 advantage after two innings on Colton Ayres’s RBI single in the second.
The Red Devils left the bases loaded in the first inning, and saw a second-inning rally cut short with a double play.
