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Big Red dominates Indian Valley

Steubenville’s 7-1 win puts them one win away from repeating as regional champs

BIG HIT — Big Red’s Nick Scott (9) congratulates Mitchell Gulan, rear, and Carlo Biasi after they scored on Alec Taylor’s two-run single in the third inning Friday in the Division II regional semifinals at Gant Stadium against Indian Valley in Zanesville. Steubenville won, 7-1. - Kim North

ZANESVILLE — Steubenville moved to within a game of repeating as Ohio Division II regional champions Friday with a convincing, 7-1, decision over error-prone Indian Valley in semifinal action at Gant Stadium.

Big Red (27-4) advances to today’s Athens/Zanesville regional final against the winner of the Athens-Marietta game. That game will be played at 2 p.m. today back in Zanesville.

“If we’re planning on getting back to Columbus and the state tournament, we had better play a lot better than we did today,” veteran Steubenville head coach Fred Heatherington said. “We didn’t play real well, but we won. Maybe a nine day layoff had something to do with it, I don’t know.”

Big Red scored one run in the bottom of the first, added two in the second and tacked on three in the third for a commanding 6-1 advantage. However, the Jefferson Countians could only muster three hits in those frames, but took advantage of a trio of errors by the Braves (18-10) and a handful walks.

Alec Taylor singled home a pair of runs in the second to give winning pitcher Nicky Zorne some breathing room. Gino Pierro’s RBI single and a throwing error accounted for three runs in the third. Carlo Biasi’s run-scoring groundout capped the scoring in the fourth.

“We had some timely hits, but not enough of them,” Heatherington said.

Zorne improved to 9-0 on the hill with seven strikeouts and six walks in 5-plus innings. Ryan Neely worked out of a jam in the sixth and breezed through the seventh.

Zorne and Michael Pierro each singled twice. Nick Scott clubbed a double.

Steubenville defeated Indian Valley in last year’s district final en route to the state tournament. Big Red will be seeking its seventh regional crown.

Division II Regional Championship

(at Gant Stadium, Zanesville)

Indian Valley 001 000 0 — 1 7 3

Steubenville 123 100 x — 7 7 1

IV–Williams lp (0K, 5BB), Miller (3), (4K, 2BB) and O’Connor; Burcher 2S; Hartrick D; McKeown rbi

S–Zorne wp (7K, 6BB), Neely (6), (1K, 1BB) and Gulan; G. Pierro S, rbi; Taylor S, 2rbi; Scott D; M. Pierro 2S; Zorne 2S; Biasi rbi

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