Muhlenkamp threw a complete-game two-hitter with five strikeouts, Jacob Cane went 3-for-3 and Springboro beat Perrysburg 5-1 in a Division I state semifinal at Thurman Munson Memorial Stadium in Canton.
“The kids played hard, and we came up with some big hits,” Springboro coach Mark Pelfrey said. “(Muhlenkamp) was awesome on the mound. It was a fun day. We played like I thought we were capable of playing.”
Springboro (25-7) has won 16 of its last 18 and will play Lewis Center Olentangy — which beat Lakota West 3-1 in the other semifinal — in the Division I state championship game at 4 p.m. Sunday at Canal Park in Akron.
“It feels awesome, dude,” Cane said. “Just like I said after the regional finals, what a group of guys this is. They’ve impressed me throughout the season. We’ve worked so hard. We care about each other so much.
“That’s what Coach Pelfrey told us the other day. That’s what he’s been saying since earlier in the season. If you play hard and play for each other, you can’t lose. You can’t lose. That’s what we’re doing right now. We’re playing our brand of baseball, and we’re just playing our hearts out. I couldn’t be happier for our guys.”
Springboro, which is in the state tournament for just the second time (2019), was tied with Lakota West at 13th in the final regular season coaches poll.
The Greater Western Ohio Conference champion Panthers scored two runs in the bottom of the second, highlighted by Vince Fortkamp’s two-RBI single.
Perrysburg got its only run in the top of the fourth.
A double play at first base got Springboro out of a bases-loaded jam in the top of the fifth.
“Sometimes you get some luck going your way — which no doubt that’s luck,” Pelfrey said. “Because if the ball’s hit in the gap, then it’s a different ballgame. We’ll take it when we get it.”
The Panthers answered with two RBI singles by Cane and Ben Veletean in the bottom of the fifth. Fortkamp bunted in a run in the bottom of the sixth for his second RBI.
“That’s really the key for our team is every day it’s somebody different that’s having a big day coming up with big hits or big plays, defensively,” Pelfrey said. “So it’s been neat to see that everybody’s contributing and doing their play.”
Muhlenkamp, who had a no-hitter heading into the fourth inning, moved his record to 9-1.
“It made it way more comfortable to go out there with a lead and just be able to go out there and do what I do — get my outs, get off the mound easy," Muhlenkamp said. “It just took a lot of stress off the whole team. It made it easier to carry energy through the innings.”
Fortkamp went 2-for-3 with his two RBIs, while Micah Brandon and Adam Smith added hits for Springboro. Offensively, Muhlenkamp went 1-for-1 with a run.
“It’s had its ups and downs, but it’s been so exciting all the way,” Muhlenkamp said of his team’s journey this season. “I can’t be more proud of these guys.”
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