Zumwalt, McKinney leads Tipp past Piqua

Sometimes, it is just that one at-bat that makes a difference in the game.

For Preston Zumwalt, the first time he stepped to the plate, the senior launched a long home run to centerfield to give the Tippecanoe baseball team the early lead, and it stood up.

Behind shutout pitching from Cayden McKinney, the Red Devils shutout Piqua last week 1-0 in a big MVL contest at the middle school. It was a key conference win for Tipp as they remained unbeaten on the season.

“Hunter is a great pitcher for them, and I have known him for a long time,” Tipp coach Cameron Dickens said after the game. “We knew it was going to be tough, and we put a huge emphasis in this game on scoring first. We were able to get a run in the first inning, and it stood up.”

“It’s huge for our confidence, we have to build off of this one, but these guys earned this win.”

Zumwalt drilled a 2-2 pitch over the wall in center to give the Red Devils the early lead, and mcKinney singled in the opening inning, but he was stranded on base as Tipp took a quick 1-0 lead.

“Even though we didn’t score any more runs, we had some good at-bats throughout the game,” Dickens said. “Preston isn’t a super vocal kid but he leads by the way he carries himself and how he plays. He set the tone, went up there and hunted the heater and it was a tone setter for us.”

While McKinney was taking care of business on the mound, it didn’t come without some pressure. He left a runner at second in the opening inning, another runner was stranded in the second and left two runners in scoring position in the third frame. But when it came to getting the big out, he was on top of his game all night.

“He was awesome with multiple pitches for strikes and has really taken a step forward as a competitor,” Dickens said. “He wants the ball in these games and he is not afraid to go out there and see these teams who have beaten us in the past. He wants these opportunities.”

Offensively, Tipp struggled to put runners on base after the opening inning, as their next base runner came in the bottom of the fifth when Landon Muhlenkamp singled with one out, but the next two batters struck out leaving him at first.

In the top of the seventh, McKinney allowed the tying run on base with a single, but he retired the last two batters of the game and the Red Devils had escaped with the win.

Tipp only collected three hits on the game, but on the mound, McKinney struck out 11 batters and scattered five hits.

Tipp finished their week with three more wins, including 12-2 and 10-0 over West Carrollton, and a non-conference 13-0 win over Bellefontaine. 

In their 10-0 win, Liskey knocked in three runs while Tipp collected 11 hits. Jackson went the distance with a two-hit shutout. The next night was a big night for Anderson McKinney, who pitched a no-hitter for Tipp picking up the win on the mound. 

On Saturday, Tipp used two hits and 4 RBIs from Eckert to lead the way over Bellefontaine.