Big Red is strong in tournament opener
CONGRATULATING — Big Red catcher Kail Simmons greets pitcher Nolan Blackburn after the final out of Monday’s Division III sectional game. Blackburn fired a complete game shutout in a 6-0 Big Red win. - Andrew Grimm
Big Red’s Nolan Blackburn fires a pitch during Monday’s sectional game. - Andrew Grimm
GOT HIM — Big Red third baseman AJ Borsch tags out a Zanesville runner during Monday’s sectional game. - Andrew Grimm
Big Red’s Royal Mayo makes contact with a swing. - Andrew Grimm
Big Red’s Maddox Gulan fires the ball back into the infield after tracking it down. - Andrew Grimm
CONGRATULATING — Big Red catcher Kail Simmons greets pitcher Nolan Blackburn after the final out of Monday’s Division III sectional game. Blackburn fired a complete game shutout in a 6-0 Big Red win. - Andrew Grimm
Big Red’s Nolan Blackburn fires a pitch during Monday’s sectional game. - Andrew Grimm
GOT HIM — Big Red third baseman AJ Borsch tags out a Zanesville runner during Monday’s sectional game. - Andrew Grimm
Big Red’s Royal Mayo makes contact with a swing. - Andrew Grimm
Big Red’s Maddox Gulan fires the ball back into the infield after tracking it down. - Andrew Grimm
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STEUBENVILLE -- As the old saying goes, the best is saved for last.
The Big Red baseball team, playing its final home game of the season at the Crimson Complex Monday evening in the opening round of the OHSAA Division III East/Southeast District tournament, made its last outing on the Players' Field of 2025 one of its best all-around performances of the season.
Fourth-seeded Steubenville (12-13) got a gem on the mound from Nolan Blackburn, some strong defense in the field and timely hitting to take care of visiting No. 5 seed Zanesville (9-14), 6-0.
"It's good to win in the tournament," Big Red head coach Fred Heathertington, who was coaching his final home game before retirement, said. "We want to go as far as we can. Right now, we're playing good as a TEAM."
Blackburn fired a complete game shutout, scattering six hits while striking out four and not walking a batter. He seemed to get stronger as he went, as his four punch outs came in the final six batters he faced.
"He controlled the strike zone," Heatherington said. "That's the best I've seen him pitch in a while. He was in full control and our defense made plays behind him."
Behind him, Big Red's infield did something so rare Heatherington, in his 36th and final season, had not seen it before -- turn a triple play. It erased Zanesville's best scoring opportunity of the game as the first two batters of the fourth inning singled, but a nice catch on a line drive by second baseman Matt Fabbro and some heads up plays by the middle infield negated all three runners.
"That was the first triple play I've seen in 36 years," Heatherington said. "We picked a guy off, had a triple play, we played good defense. We made some good plays."
At the plate, the hits weren't plentiful, but they came with runners in scoring position. Myles Cooper had an RBI double in the second and an RBI single in the third, AJ Borsch had a third-inning RBI double and Nicky Lovato capped the scoring with a two-out, two-run single in the sixth.
All of Big Red's hits came in the innings they scored.
With the victory, Big Red advances to take on top-seeded Tri-Valley (22-4) in the second round on Wednesday in Dresden. The first pitch of that game is slated for 5 p.m.
"We know we have a tough road, but we'll take our chances and I like our chances," Heatherington said. "We'll see what we can do. We'll get ready for the next one (today)."
OHSAA Division III Tournament
East/Southeast District Sectional Semifinal
No. 4 Steubenville 6, No. 5 Zanesville 0
Z 0-0-0 0-0-0 0 -- 0 6 0
S 0-2-2 0-0-2 x -- 6 6 1
ZANESVILLE (9-14): Underwood (LP, 6IP, 6R, 6ER, 6H, 1K, 4BB, 1HBP) and Mercer. Norris S; Murray S; Mercer S; Kimble S; Mohler D, S.
STEUBENVILLE (12-13): Blackburn (WP, CG, 0R, 6H, 4K, 0BB) and Simmons. Blackburn S; Borsch S, RBI; Cooper D, S, 2RBIs; Crosier D; Lovato S, 2RBIs.