By By SCOTT NOVAK / Dowagiac Daily News
There will be no surprises when Dowagiac takes on Comstock Saturday in the Division 2 Regional Baseball Tournament in Coldwater.
This will be the third meeting of the year between the two schools. Dowagiac swept a Wolverine Conference doubleheader from the Colts back in early May.
The Chieftains (30-6) defeated Comstock (23-8) 5-3 and 7-6. Dowagiac rallied late in the nightcap to complete the sweep.
The Chieftains and Colts will be the first of two semifinal contests at Coldwater High School on Saturday. The game is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m.
The second semifinal, between Mattawan and Marshall, a pair of Southwest Michigan Athletic Conference teams, is slated for noon.
The championship game is scheduled to start at 2 p.m.
Dowagiac coach Andy Kruger never won a district championship despite being on some outstanding teams, including one which was ranked No. 1 in Class B (now Division 2).
He is excited about the prospects for his team this weekend.
"We had some really good teams when I was a player for Dowagiac and we could not seem to crack the district championship victory secret," he said. "So, this championship is extra special. This team seems to know the secret to winning big games. We have a great chance to win regionals."
Dowagiac will have to play its best on Saturday if it hopes to advance.
The Chieftains must continue to get good pitching and play solid defense. If the offense shows up again on Saturday like it did the previous weekend, Dowagiac will be tough to handle.
"We just need to keep our offense going," Kruger said. "Many of the players in our line up are heating up. If we can collect 10 or more hits in game one and game two, we will win regionals."
Kruger is by no means looking past Comstock and neither are his players.
The Chieftains know they were in a battle with the Colts during the regular season match up and expect another tough game on Saturday.
Junior Jamie Simpson had a hand in both victories as a reliever.
Sophomore Troy Stover earned the victory in the opening game as he worked five innings before giving way to Simpson, who picked up the save.
The pair combined to allow just six hits.
In the nightcap, Dowagiac built up an early 4-0 lead before Comstock came roaring back.
The Colts scored four times in the sixth inning to grab a 5-4 lead on the Chieftains. Dowagiac came right back in the bottom half of the inning to reclaim the lead.
Jake Cox worked the first five innings of the nightcap. He gave way to Jason Fryman, who then gave way to Simpson, who shut down the Colts.
"Comstock has some athletes, we did not see their best," Kruger pointed out. "We are by no way underestimating Comstock."
Offensively against the Colts, Dowagiac had seven hits in the opening game and 11 hits in the nightcap.
Simpson had a home run in the opening game, while D.J. Edgerly and Stover doubled in the nightcap.
Kruger knows that his team must play well in all three phases of the game if it wants to be a regional champion.
"We need strong performances from our pitching staff and we need to make very few mistakes on defense," he said. "The better the competition, the fewer mistakes you can can get away with."