MICDS Defeats John Burroughs on Walkoff Homer

It had been a rough day for MICDS athletic director Don Maurer and his Ram teams.

The lacrosse and soccer teams had seen their seasons end with losses. The lacrosse team lost to rival John Burroughs while the soccer team lost in overtime to Villa Duchesne.

But the day ended with a bang, a bang that Maurer predicted as Jackson Myer hit a leadoff homer in the bottom of the eighth inning to give the Ram baseball team a thrilling 2-1 victory over John Burroughs Tuesday in the Class 3 District 5 semifinals at Clayton.

"Jackson had just made a great play to end the top half of the inning and I predicted that he would end it with a home run," Maurer said.

Myer made his AD look like a genius as he pulled a 1-2 pitch over the left center field fence to send the Ram faithful into a frenzy.

"I didn't know it was gone until I saw the left fielder with his head down and heard the noise from our fans," Myer said.

One of those fans was Jackson's brother, Spence, who is a college freshman who saw his high school career end with a semifinal district loss to John Burroughs last year.

"I know how Spence and all those seniors felt last year," Jackson Myer said. "This is for them."

It had actually been the last two years that Burroughs had beaten MICDS in the district semifinals.

Tuesday's game was a classic pitcher's dual by a pair of southpaws. Bomber freshman Alex Jasek was sensational. He gave up a run in the fourth inning on a triple by Joe Strege and a single by Christo Meier.

Burroughs had more scoring chances off MICDS lefty Adam Putnam as it left five runners in the first three innings, three on third base.

The Bombers finally manufactured a run in the fifth as Nathan Adams walked stole second, moved to third when the throw hit him and scored after Davey Holmes struck out. The third strike was dropped by Meier and when he threw to first to retire Holmes, Adams dashed home and beat the throw from first baseman Collin Palmer.

Burroughs left a runner in scoring position in the top of the eighth. Myer, the ninth place hitter in the Ram order, led off the bottom of the inning. He fell behind 0-2 and then took a borderline pitch which was called a ball. He followed with a swing that he will never forget.

"I have been playing baseball my whole life and this is easily the most excited I have been," Myer said. "I am just floating on cloud nine right now."

Both coaches knew the game was over when the ball left Myer's bat.

"It had that sound," MICDS coach Pete Jans said.

"I knew the minute he hit it that it was gone," Bomber coach Andy Katzman said.

It was the third homer of the season for Myer and the second at the Clayton High field. He hit a grand slam late in a 3-3 game against the Greyhounds.

"This was one of the better high school games in which I have been a part of," Katzman said. "Both pitchers were outstanding and both defenses were outstanding. It is a shame that either team had to lose."

MICDS moves to to Wednesday's district championship game against top-seeded Westminster Christian Academy. The Wildcats edged Priory 3-2 in the other semifinal game Tuesday.

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