Walks, errors cost Henderson in loss to Coatesville

WEST CHESTER >> In baseball when you give a good team chances on walks and errors, that team invariably will make you pay for those gifts.
Monday afternoon at Bob Owens Field in a key Ches-Mont National showdown, West Chester Henderson opened the door in the top of the fourth with two walks and three errors, and Coatesville made the Warriors pay.
Coatesville stormed back from a 2-1 deficit to score five runs in the top of the fourth and then threw a four spot up in the sixth inning as the Red Raiders knocked the Warriors from the unbeaten ranks with a 10-5 Ches-Mont League win.
Coatesville (6-1 Ches-Mont, 6-1 overall) got good pitching from both Ryan Ohar, who went the first two innings, and junior left-hander Damon Nelson, who threw the final five frames. Nelson bedeviled Henderson (5-1, 5-2) with a nasty changeup and a live fastball. The Red Raider hurler only walked one batter and held the Warriors to four hits.
“I knew I was coming in in relief and in warmups my changeup was very good,” Nelson said. “And getting those five runs in the fourth inning made things a whole lot easier. You can relax and just concentrate on throwing strikes and that is what I did. Today, I felt very good out there.”
Henderson jumped to a 2-1 lead in the first inning when Zach Roberts took a high fastball from Ohar and drove it over the left center field fence for a 2-1 lead. But, the top of the fourth proved to be the Warriors undoing.

Henderson starter Brady Bash walked Dalton Donovan and Colin Augustine to start the inning. In came Jackson Ritthmael to pitch. The Warrior reliever hit Alex Curtiss with a pitch to load the bases with none out. Jake Van Dermotter then hit a grounder to short, enticing Thomas Caulfield to go for the force at second base. But, Caulfield’s throw went into right field, plating two Coatesville runs.
Later in the inning Coatesville got big hits from Nathan Valenta and a huge two-run double from Jared Urban to give the Red Raiders a commanding 6-2 advantage. Urban banged out three hits on the day.
“I have started the season a little slow so I have been working with Coach Ziegler (Hal), on going the other way and he threw me a fastball on the outside part of the plate and I just got it over the shortstop’s head. We really hit my freshman and sophomore years and then last year we struggled, but today we really came out of it and I think we will get rolling now at the plate.”
Coatesville was not done with the offensive show, however. Up 6-3 going into the top of the sixth, the Red Raiders nailed down the Warriors’ coffin by scoring four runs on three hits. Valenta and Urban both had RBI singles and then Stephon Hines lofted a towering two-run homer to left field and Coatesville had the game by the throat at 10-3.
And the way Nelson was dealing it could have been 100-3. The tall lefty continued to pound the strike zone with his assortment of pitches. Nelson allowed the potent Henderson attack just four hits while striking out four over his five innings of work. Coatesville’s record went to 6-1 and the victory put them into first place in the Ches-Mont National.
“We have a good pitching staff,” Coatesville coach Hal Ziegler said. “Ryan Ohar did his job for us today and then Damon came in and he was very good. We have two seniors and three juniors and we use them all. And today we hit the ball hard, something we have not done so far this season.”
For Henderson, it was a sloppy loss, but the Warriors are still in the thick of the National Division race with a trip to Downingtown West on the schedule for Wednesday.
“We did some things we have not done so far this season,” Henderson coach Luke McNichol said. “And they took advantage and got some very big hits.”