The Onaga baseball team went to St. Marys last Tuesday night for a double-header against the Bears in an inter-regional matchup that would have postseason implications. St. Marys had had Onaga’s number the last two years, sweeping the Buffaloes in both regular season matchups. In the four games, Onaga had lost by a grand total of five runs, with three of the losses being by one run in games that the Buffaloes led going into the final inning before failing to finish out the games. And while Tuesdays double-header would see Onaga get its first program win over the Bears, their old ways of dropping late leads came back to haunt them once again.
St. Marys would throw their ace in the first game, senior Abe Huracha, who was coming off of an Honorable Mention All-State season in 2022. The senior was also on the mound when they two teams met in the semifinals of the regional tournament when the Bears topped the Buffaloes, ending their season. On the mound for Onaga was Colby Simkins and the two former travel ball teammates pitched like they have all season, keeping their opponents scoreless through the first two innings.
Huracha’s night was short as he was being kept on a pitch count thanks to St. Marys having a quick turnaround before playing Rossville on Thursday. That opened the door for the Buffaloes offense as they scored the first runs of the game in the third inning. Simkins led off the inning with a walk, then stole second. L.J. Koelzer would ground out to shortstop, moving Simkins to third. Hunter Lamond would then reach base on a bunt, and Jeramia Dorsey would walk to load the bases. A balk would end up scoring Simkins, then Rayce Fisher would reach on an error that scored Lamond to give Onaga a 2-0 led.
The Buffaloes had been playing relatively error-free baseball in their first six games, but that came to an end in the first game against the Bears. A couple of hits, a hit batter, and an error helped them score three runs in the bottom of the third to take a 3-2 lead. But a leadoff single by Zac Fisher in the fourth, a single by Simkins, and a walk and hit by pitch by Lamond and Rayce Fisher would lead to two more runs for Onaga to make it 4-3.
Later, in the top of the fifth, the Buffaloes would add another run when Zac Fisher hit a double to score Jackson Kolterman. Kolterman also took over for Simkins on the mound and in the fifth inning and would hold the Bears scoreless for in the inning.
Then in the bottom of the sixth, Onaga’s lead would slip away as a leadoff walk and an error would give St. Marys the two runs they needed to tie the game heading into the final inning.
The Buffaloes would ground out twice, then fly out to end the top of the seventh. Then in the bottom of the inning the Bears were at the top of their lineup and in prime position to make a charge. With runners on first and second and just one out, Huracha was at the plate. He was 3-3 heading into the at-bat, but Kolterman got him to fly out to second base on the first pitch and it appeared as though the Buffaloes were going to weather the storm and send the game to extra innings. But two pitches later the runners attempted to steal and a missed throw from the catcher would lead to the Bears scoring the final run of the game to get the win 6-5.
Killian McCann took the win for St. Marys. He surrendered zero runs on zero hits over two innings, walking one. Lane Smith threw three and a third innings in relief out of the bullpen as well.
Jackson Kolterman took the loss for Onaga. The righty went two and two-thirds innings, allowing three runs, two earned, on two hits and striking out two.
Onaga outhit St. Marys seven to six in the game. Simkins, Zac Fisher, and Kolterman each recorded two hits, but the Buffaloes’ six errors would be the difference in the game.
Game two would be a completely different story. Senior Zac Fisher was on the mound for Onaga and pitched one of the better games of his career, shutting down St. Marys by throwing a complete game shutout and leading Onaga to a 7-0 victory. Huracha would hit a double in the fifth inning for the only hit allowed in the game, the one at-bat that kept Fisher from throwing the first no-hitter in school history. Fisher also only walked one batter, which, along with the one hit, had Fisher on the verge of a perfect game. He also struck out 11 of the 23 batters he faced in the game.
The game was Fisher’s second complete-game shutout of the season and the ace now is 4-0 on the season with a 0.70 ERA. His efficiency has led to 30 strikeouts on the season with just three walks and two earned runs in four games. He is top 25 in the state of Kansas 1-6A in both ERA and strikeouts, while his four wins are tied for the most in the state through the first half of the season.
Nate Hutley took the loss for St. Marys. The hurler lasted three innings, allowing five hits and two runs while walking zero.
L.J. Koelzer and Colby Simkins had multiple hits for the Buffaloes, with Koelzer leading the way as the sophomore went 3-for-3 at the plate.
Onaga is now 7-1 on the season. The sit atop the league standings with a perfect 4-0 mark, and are second in the regional standings with Valley Falls at the top with a 9-1 record. The Buffaloes also were ranked last week for the first time in school history, as the Kansas Association of Baseball Coaches voted them the #8 ranked team in the state. They return home for two double-headers this week as they faced 7-3 Oskaloosa on Monday, April 17th, then host Troy on Friday with the team’s third straight league championship on the line.
You can check out the baseball team's roster, look at stats, follow results, look at the program’s history, and much more, head over to the team's page on the school website, www.usd322.org/page/baseball.