Joseph "New New" Adkins
May 19, 2009
Irene Marie Deroche Lajaunie
May 22, 2009
One poor inning of fielding cost the South Terrebonne Gators as their season ended Friday in a 12-2 loss in the Class 5A quarterfinals to the top-seeded Northshore Panthers.
The game at A.B. Netterville Stadium in Denham Springs ended in the bottom of the fifth due to the 10-run mercy rule.
The Gators committed four of the team’s five errors in the fourth inning, leading to nine Panther runs.
“We gave them a couple of extra outs. We let ground balls go through our legs, one into centerfield,” said Gator head coach Nathan Cotten. “(Northshore) took advantage of the opportunities they were given, and you can’t do that with a team as good as Northshore.”
Meanwhile, the Gators let chances slip through their grasp. They left 10 runners on base, including a pair that was picked off.
It was the complete antithesis of the clutch hitting and tough pitching that got the Gators to the quarterfinals.
“Pitching and defense wins ball games,” Cotten said. “We only allowed four runs in those first two games (against West Monroe and Fontainbleau). We didn’t minimize the mistakes like we did earlier in the playoffs.”
The start of the game was delayed 90 minutes because of rain, but Cotten said it did not play a factor in the outcome.
“It was not ideal conditions by any means. The infield was fine, but the outfield had standing water,” he said. “It affected them the same as it did us.”
The Gators took a 1-0 lead in the top of the second when Justin Neill scored on a two-out Steven Wurzlow RBI single.
Gators’ starting pitcher Alex Prestenbach had Panthers’ hitters confused through two innings with his curveball. However, he began losing his control in the third inning.
Northshore (34-2) scored twice in the third on a pair of RBI singles to go up 2-1. The Gators’ self-destruction in the fourth inning put the Panthers up 11-1.
After South Terrebonne (23-12) scored a run on a Carl LeBlanc RBI single to plate Brock Hebert in the fifth, Northshore scored on an RBI double to the end the contest.
“I’m very proud of what the guys accomplished in the playoffs. This is the furthest we’ve advanced in some time,” said the seventh-year Gators’ coach. “We’ve been one and out, so it feels good to get this far.”
It was the final game for nine graduating South Terrebonne seniors: Neill, Wurzlow, LeBlanc, Hebert, Prestenbach, Patrick Labat, Michael Barba, Ronnie Thomas and Jonathan Dupre.
“They put a whole lot a work into making this program successful,” Cotten said. “Obviously, we’re going to have some big shoes to fill, and a couple of them are moving on the next level.”
Hebert accepted a scholarship to Southeastern Louisiana. Barba will play football and baseball at Nicholls and LeBlanc is going to the U.S. Naval Academy.
Most of the graduating seniors have played on the Gators’ baseball team since their freshman year. Cotten hopes the underclassmen are ready to step up in 2010.
“It’s always tough to replace a starter,” he said. “We’re looking for a handful of guys to progress next year and fill those leadership roles. They know what they need to do. It’s just a matter of getting them prepared.”
Gators catcher Carl LeBlanc went 1-for-2 with an RBI single as South Terrebonne fell to the eventual state 5A champion Northshore Panthers 12-2 in the quarterfinals.
