CLINTON - Leading 4-3 entering the sixth inning of their regional quarterfinal game against Clinton, the Cheesemakers fell apart in the final innings as the host Cougars slipped past with seven runs to steal the win by a final score of 10-4.
After committing an error off of a grounder, Clinton put together a series of singles to start the rally. Monroe, meanwhile, had a culmination of mistakes after a few costly errors and hit batsmen kept the Cougars' rally alive.
"We just couldn't get around it," Monroe coach Dustin Huffman said of his team's sixth inning struggles. "Credit (Clinton) for getting hit at the right time, (but) we couldn't step up and make the next play."
Lucas Neuenschwander started on the mound for the Cheesemakers, pitching five innings and recorded three hits, six runs (two earned), and six strikeouts before Brett Edmonds and Chase Hellenbrand came in for relief.
Junior Carter Adkins finished 3-for-4 at the plate to lead Monroe. Brian Wang finished 1-for-3 with two RBIs, while Sean Saxby finished 2-for-4 with a double.
"This was one of those seasons where I think that we didn't reach our full potential," Huffman said. "We did a pretty good job as far as our hitting and pitching, (but) I think a lot of our issues were from the defensive side. ... We return a lot of players next year, and we will meet with each one of them and let them know on what we can improve on, (but) if we can shore up on defense, I think we can be a pretty good team next year."
After committing an error off of a grounder, Clinton put together a series of singles to start the rally. Monroe, meanwhile, had a culmination of mistakes after a few costly errors and hit batsmen kept the Cougars' rally alive.
"We just couldn't get around it," Monroe coach Dustin Huffman said of his team's sixth inning struggles. "Credit (Clinton) for getting hit at the right time, (but) we couldn't step up and make the next play."
Lucas Neuenschwander started on the mound for the Cheesemakers, pitching five innings and recorded three hits, six runs (two earned), and six strikeouts before Brett Edmonds and Chase Hellenbrand came in for relief.
Junior Carter Adkins finished 3-for-4 at the plate to lead Monroe. Brian Wang finished 1-for-3 with two RBIs, while Sean Saxby finished 2-for-4 with a double.
"This was one of those seasons where I think that we didn't reach our full potential," Huffman said. "We did a pretty good job as far as our hitting and pitching, (but) I think a lot of our issues were from the defensive side. ... We return a lot of players next year, and we will meet with each one of them and let them know on what we can improve on, (but) if we can shore up on defense, I think we can be a pretty good team next year."
