Freshman pitcher Kaden Dydalewicz tossed seven sparkling innings, and freshmen Coy DeFury and Tanner Reaves homered as 11th-ranked Blinn powered past the Pioneers for a 12-3 victory in the Region XIV South Regional championship at Leroy Dreyer Field in Brenham, Texas.
“This is what we’ve been working hard for all year,” first-year Buccaneers head coach Dusty Hart said. “You find yourself right at the edge, and we wanted to get this done today. We talked as a team before the game and said, ‘Let’s finish this today.’ We didn’t want to take today off and worry about coming back tomorrow (for a winner-take-all game). I’m proud of our guys for taking care of business.”
Before it could com
pete for its first regional title since 2014, top-seeded Blinn (42-13) was forced to wait an additional two hours after rain Sunday morning pushed the start time to the consolation game between third-seeded Wharton and fourth-seeded Bossier Parish Junior College from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. That shift pushed the title game two hours back to 8 p.m.
The delay appeared to slow the Bucs early, but failed to fully restrain an offense that has averaged 8.7 runs per game this spring. After two scoreless frames, DeFury mashed a no-doubt grand slam over the wall in right field for a 4-0 lead.
“It got us off to a good start,” DeFury said. “I was just there for my boys, and it got us rolling pretty well. Our coaches always make sure we’ve got the right guys in the right situations, and we’ve been doing this kind of damage all year because of that. Coach (Wade) Regas always tells us before we take the field that calm, cool, and collected teams have fun and win, so that’s what we’re living by right now.”
(Pictured: Blinn’s Tanner Reaves rounds third base after hitting a two-run home run against Wharton County on May 7)
After the Pioneers tallied a run in the top of the fourth, Reaves, the Region XIV South Zone Player of the Year and Region XIV Offensive Player of the Year, blasted a two-run shot in the home half of the frame to make it 6-1.
Blinn would go on to score in each of the remaining four innings.
That was all Dydalewicz needed, as the hard-throwing right-hander dominated Wharton County on 107 pitches. Dydalewicz (6-0) allowed one run (earned) on four hits with 10 strikeouts and two walks.
“The mindset today was just to go out there and throw strikes, stay focused, and keep my head in the game,” said Dydalewicz. “I knew my team would back me up as always, and it was just fun being out there throwing the ball.”
Reaves paced the Buccaneers’ 14-hit attack with a 3-for-3 day at the plate. He drove in two runs, scored three times, and also drew three walks. Freshman Jake Kolkhorst added three hits, including a double, to go with a walk, an RBI, and one run. Freshman Brandon Bishop chipped two hits, two runs, a walk, and an RBI. Sophomore Ryan Scott singled twice, drove in a run and scored. Sophomore Tate Bethel and freshman Brayden Sprencel also tallied an RBI apiece.
Blinn finished with 13 walks.
“When you have an offense like we have, it takes a lot of stress off my shoulders,” Dydalewicz added. “One through nine, everybody in our lineup can swing the bat, and with the good crowds this weekend it kept everything going. It was just a lot of fun.”
Freshman pitcher Blane Zeplin worked a hitless eighth and ninth inning, fanning two and walking one along the way. He punched out the final Pioneer he faced, igniting a spirited celebration from the Buccaneers and the Leroy Dreyer Field fans.
“This tournament is not easy to win,” added Hart. “Wharton gave us everything we could handle and so did Bossier Parish, all of which is preparing us for what’s coming next. This next weekend is going to be another intense battle, and it’s important to be in those big games and those kinds of moments.”
(Pictured: Blinn head coach Dusty Hart, center, speaks to his team after the Buccaneers defeated Wharton County on May 7)
Up next, Blinn will host Region XIV North Regional champion Paris Junior College (38-18) in the Region XIV Super Regional. The Buccaneers earned the right to host the super regional by virtue of their seeding. Paris won the North Regional as the third seed.
Dates and times for the best-of-three series have yet to be announced. The winner of the super regional will move on to the NJCAA Division I Baseball World Series, which begins May 27 at Sam Suplizio Field in Grand Junction, Colo.
Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 43 NJCAA national championships since 1987.
