AJ Goldmeyer gets fired up as he scores the tying run after teammate AJ Clymer connected on the second of three Liberty doubles in the top of the 7th to cap a come-from-behind win over rival Olentangy Orange. (Press Pros Feature Photos by Brian Bayless)
AJ Goldmeyer, AJ Clymer and Andrew Leonard smacked back-to-back-to-back doubles in a seventh-inning uprising as Liberty overtook Orange in a battle of area and state powers.
Lewis Center, OH – As a first-team All-Ohio quarterback on the Division I state championship football team, a prolific scoring forward on the ice hockey team (2024 state champion) and a third-year starting shortstop on the defending district champion baseball team, Olentangy Liberty senior shortstop Andrew Leonard knows a little something about clutch situations.
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“I was thinking when he came up in the seventh (inning), ‘This is the guy I want at the plate,’ ‘’ Patriots veteran coach Ty Brenning said.
No wonder.
Leonard patiently took two pitches (both strikes) off Olentangy Orange reliever Keegan Knupp, then ripped an RBI double to the right-center field gap as Liberty rallied for a 3-2 win at Orange in the latest showdown between intra-district rivals and perennial state powers Monday.
Trailing 2-1 with one out in the seventh, AJ Goldmeyer doubled to the left-center field fence. Then, AJ Clymer doubled down the left field line to tie the game. Like Leonard’s game-winner, both doubles came on two-strike pitches.
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Leonard said he didn’t go up to the plate with the idea of being a hero.
“The pressure was off a little bit because my teammates hit doubles and got us even,” Leonard said. “For us, it’s a next guy up mentality My main objective was to hit it to the right side and move (Clymer) over. He threw a slider and I got it good. I don’t think it was a matter of us seeing or expecting anything (from Knupp). I think we were just locked in. Of course, we were plenty motivated. You can’t lose to Orange.”
Leonard, who was a finalist for the coveted Ohio Mr. Football award, has signed to play football at Findlay.
“In a way, it’s tough for me knowing this is my final season playing baseball, but that makes me and the other seniors even more motivated to finish this out strong,” Leonard said. “And beating Orange is always special no matter what sport it is.”
The first of three scheduled Ohio Capital Conference Central Division matchups certainly lived up to its billing.
Zane Konczak watches an errant throw to third get past Liberty’s Aydin Deen and he takes full advantage, scoring standing up during an Orange rally in the 5th to take a 2-1 lead over Liberty.
Orange was ranked No. 1 and Liberty No. 2 in the Central District Baseball Coaches Association poll. The state coaches rated Orange second and Liberty 10th. The latest MaxPreps.com state power poll, however, has Liberty first and Orange second.
“I don’t know if expectations are any higher this year than any other year,” Brenning said. “Expectations are for other people. Every day, we look in the mirror and try to compete. This program has been built from the inside out with fundamentals and character. We just try to keep consistent in our approach.”
With junior ace Parker Van Engelenhoven on the mound and a sparkling defense behind him, Liberty got the early jump.
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In the second, Ryan Stickel reached on a throwing error by starting pitcher Devin Parker. He moved all the way to third on an errant pickoff attempt and scored on a ground out by Drew Hauenstein.
Parker Van Engelenhoven was stellar during his outing, pitching 6 innings and consistently delivering fastballs in excess of 90 MPH.
It stayed that way until the fifth. Orange’s Jake Luling singled and took second on a wild pitch. Zane Konczak smoked a two-out double down the left field line to tie it. He scored on a throwing error by Leonard, who tried to go the short way for a force at third but caught Aydin Deen off guard.
“It was an untimely error but we made some great plays in the field to get us to that point,” Brenning said.
One in particular prevented Orange from tacking on another run in the sixth. Stickel made a diving stab at second and perfectly led Van Engelenhoven on a bang-bang play at first to end the threat.
Van Engelenhoven, a 6-foot-4, 210-pound righthander who committed to Louisville as a freshman, allowed just three hits in six innings of work, striking out four. His fastball was clocked as fast as 93 mph while consistently ranging between 89 and 91. Reliever Dylan Dielman pitched a one-two-three seventh with two strikeouts.
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“Parker was really good tonight,” Brenning said. “He could have finished but we had him on a pitch count.”
Van Engelenhoven, Goldmeyer and Clymer each had two hits to pace Liberty (13-3, 8-1), who opened up a two-game lead over Orange and Hilliard Davidson in the rugged Central.
Dylan Dielman celebrates after taking down the final batter during Liberty’s 3-2 win over rival Olentangy Orange.
Parker threw five strong innings for Orange (12-3, 5-3), allowing just four singles with six strikeouts.
“When we play each other, it always tends to be a low-scoring game like this,” Pioneers coach Tom Marker said. “Of course, we always look forward to playing Liberty. Our primary goal always is to try to make a run in the tournament. This (loss) won’t make or break us, either way. Who knows? It’s very well possible we may see them four times.”
The rivals will square off again at Liberty on Wednesday, then will return to Orange for a May 12 game.
With the Ohio High School Athletic Association’s expansion from four to seven divisions, six Central District teams now will claim championships instead of four.
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