Andrew Grimm DELIVERY — Catholic Central pitcher Matthew Jones delivers in Thursday's district tournament game.

STRASBURG – The day belonged to Brody Baughman and the top-seeded Strasburg baseball team.

Baughman, who was named the Inter-Valley Conference North Division Player of the Year Wednesday, was dominant on the mound, and the sophomore standout reached base safely five times as Strasburg shut out No. 8 seed Catholic Central, 9-0, in an Division VII Eastern District Quarterfinal Thursday evening up at Franklin Park.

“He definitely deserves all of his accolades,” first-year catholic Central (6-16) head coach Andrew Henry said. “He threw very well. He threw hard. He was effective. He definitely earned that one-hitter he got today.”

Baughman, who is now 9-0 on the mound this season, struck out at least one batter in every inning with six innings of striking out multiple batters including two innings of recording three strikeouts. Baughman helped his own cause at the plate by belting a double and walking four times. He also scored two runs and stole a base.

“We did not put a lot of pressure on their defense,” Henry said. “They have a good pitching staff. Their catcher is a good receiver. They put the ball in play. They are sound all the way around.”

Catholic Central used two pitchers in the game. Matthew Jones started on the mound and took the loss. Jones struck out one and walked four in his 2 2/3 innings of work. He was replaced by during the third inning by Joseph Vranish. Vranish struck out three while walking three in his 3 1/3 innings of relief work.

“Strasburg is the No. 1 seed,” Henry said. “They are a good team. They look like they are going to make a deep run into the playoffs. I wish them the best of luck for the rest of their season.”

With the win, Strasburg (18-7) will play in the semifinals against No. 4 seed Shadyside at 5 p.m. Tuesday at home. Shadyside advanced by shutting out No. 5 seed Conotton Valley, 4-0, in a quarterfinal Thursday at home.

“It was warmer today at gametime than I thought it was going to be,” Henry said. “The sun came out and that helped.”

The Tigers plated three runs in the home half of the first to gain the early advantage. After a strikeout, Brody Baughman doubled to center, and Caden Douglas was hit by a pitch to put a pair of runners on base. Then, Brodie Hurst hit a single to left scoring Baughman to make it 1-0, and Douglas advanced to third on an error on the play while Hurst ended up at second base. Avery Keffer followed with a single to center scoring Douglas and Hurst to give the boys from Tuscarawas County a 3-0 advantage. A pop-up resulted in the second out before Zayden Barr was hit by a pitch to put two runners on, however, a flyout to center brought the inning to an end.

The Tigers extended their advantage in the second. Drew Lancaster tripled to right to start the inning before Baughman walked to put runners on the corners. Baughman then stole second, and Dugan walked to load the bases. Hurst then singled to left scoring Lancaster and Baughman to make the score, 5-0, as Dugan advanced to second. Both runners moved up a base on a passed ball, however, both runners were stranded in scoring position thanks to a pair of pop-ups.

The victors increased their advantage in the third. Barr drew a walk to start the inning before advancing to second on a passed ball. Barr went to third on a groundout and scored on a single by Peyton Herman making it a 6-0 ballgame, and Herman moved up to second on an error on the play. After a flyout, Baughman walked for the second time putting two runners on base, however, a strikeout ended the inning.

“We have been able to avoid the inning from heck in the last couple of weeks,” Henry said. “That is something that was characteristic of us in the beginning of the season, but we have not had that one bad inning. We had a couple of errors here and there, and that is going to happen in high school baseball. We kept from having a really bad inning, but they did have a couple three-run innings and that adds up. I am proud of our guys today. We made them play all seven innings.”

Strasburg increased its advantage in the fourth. Hurst reached on an error to start the inning before the next two batters were retired. Then, Barr was hit by a pitch for the second time moving Hurst up to second. Then, Tressel Miller singled to left scoring Hurst to make it, 7-0, as Barr moved up to second. Logan Harper came in to run for Miller, and the two runners advanced when Herman reached on an error before scoring on a single by Lancaster upping the score to 9-0. Herman and Lancaster advanced a base on a wild pitch as Baughman was issued his third walk of the game to load the bases, but a strikeout ended the threat preventing Strasburg from reaching the 10-run plateau.

The boys from Jefferson County were retired in order on three strikeouts in the fifth giving the hosts a chance to end the game in the bottom of the inning. The first two batters were retired, however, Tanner Tucker and Barr each recorded a single, and Roque Munoz, who came in to run for Tucker, and Barr moved up a base as Logan Harper walked to load the bases. The game-ending run was 90 feet away, however, a strikeout brought the inning to a close sending the game to the sixth.

Luke Bryan singled leading off the sixth for the Blue-and-Gold giving them their first baserunner of the game, however, Baughman struck out the next three batters to end the inning giving his team another chance to end the game early.

Strasburg had another opportunity to end the game via the mercy rule, however, the Tigers once again missed out on the opportunity. Lancaster led off the inning by reaching on an error before advancing to second on a second error on the play. Baughman was then walked for the fourth time putting two runners on base, however, three-straight flyouts ended the inning without the game-ending run being scored.

“The early season Crusaders would not have been able to do that,” Henry said. “They would have gotten down, but these guys have matured. Our young guys have matured. They do not give up. I am proud of their effort. With the way their pitcher was throwing, one run was going to be enough to win the game today. The amount of runs they scored is a moot point. I am proud of the guys for making them play all seven innings.”

Baughman retired the Crusaders in order in the seventh ending the game.

“I look at this season as a season of growth not only for the players but also for myself as a head coach,” Henry said. “When you are one of the assistant coaches you show up and do what the head coach needs you to do, but the job of a head coach is never ending. You are coordinating things off the field, you’re thinking about your practice plan for the upcoming week or you are trying to reschedule games. It is a big undertaking. I have grown as a coach. I give our kids credit. I am proud of them for sticking together.”

Baughman, who entered the game with a 1.28 ERA, now has 89 strikeouts on the season. Baughman, who now has 30 hits on the season, entered the game with a batting average of .397 to go along with 17 RBI.

The game was the final one for Catholic Central senior Zach Bryan.

“I appreciate his leadership all season,” Henry said. “He missed all of last season due to an injury. He did a good job for us in centerfield and as our leadoff batter. He had a good year after having a year off.”

The boys from Jefferson County are expected to get an influx in talent next season from incoming freshman class.

“We have a solid group of underclassmen coming in as freshmen,” Henry said. “I am looking forward to seeing what the eighth grade group can do at the high school level. From what I have been told, reinforcements are on the way. I am looking forward to seeing what they can do.

“I am looking at next season’s schedule. I want us to be challenged, but I also want to be where we can compete with where we are at as an organization. There has been to be that balance between being a challenge and us being able to compete day in and day out.”

Strasburg is scheduled to play New Philadelphia at 5 p.m. today on the road.

Strasburg 9, Catholic Central 0

Catholic Central 000 000 0 – 0 0 6

Strasburg 321 300 X – 9 10 0

CATHOLIC CENTRAL (6-16): Jones LP (2 2/3IP, 1K, 4BB), Vranish (3 1/3IP, 3K, 3BB) and L. Bryan. L. Bryan S.

STRASBURG (18-7): Baughman WP (6IP, 15K, 0BB) and Tucker. Lancaster S, T; Baughman D; Hurst 2S, 3RBI; Keffer S, 2RBI; Tucker S; Barr S; Miller S, RBI; Herman S, RBI.