Ready when called: Braden Mann steps in, lifts Cathedral to regional title over Shelbyville

GREENWOOD — One batter into Saturday’s Class 3A regional title game, Cathedral second baseman Tyler Carlos knew something was wrong with his knee.

The senior banged his knee against the turf while fielding and ground ball and had to leave the game. Now the Fighting Irish were down their No. 2 hitter in a win-or-go-home situation, but fellow senior Braden Mann was ready for his opportunity.

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With runners on first and second in the fifth inning, Mann bounced a ball back to Shelbyville pitcher Reece Prickett. Prickett tried to get the lead runner out at third, but he threw the ball away, allowing the tying a go-ahead runs to score. The Fighting Irish added three more runs in the seventh inning, pulling away for a 6-1 win over the Golden Bears.

The win gives Cathedral (21-9-1) 10 regional titles as a program. The Fighting Irish advance to play Gibson Southern in the semistate semifinals.

&#8220;His preparation is unmatched,” Cathedral coach Ed Freije said of Mann. “He’s about as dialed in a player and a kid that there is. He competes really hard. He practices really hard. He’s a student of the game and a phenomenal teammate.

“He’s a guy that hasn’t been in the lineup a ton but he’s always ready. He’s always ready when his number is called.”

Mann entered Saturday’s game with 12 games played and eight total plate appearances. He reached base twice against the Golden Bears and scored two runs. In the bottom of the sixth, Mann made a sliding stop near the second base bag, got to his feet and threw out the runner at first, preventing the runner at third from scoring and preserving a 3-1 lead.

“I was going to continue to trust in this team,” Mann said. “I didn’t know if it was going to be me. I didn’t know if it was going to be the person on my left or right, I was just ready to make a play and help my time win.”

With infielders like Mann and Army commit Eli Sinsabaugh playing up the middle, pitcher Henry Haley challenged the Golden Bears (20-5) with pitches in the zone and relied on his defense to make plays. Haley went the distance, striking out seven while scattering four hits and walking two.

“Just pounding the zone and trusting my guys,” Haley said. “They told me I could trust them at the beginning of the game, so pitching to contact and trusting my infield to get the balls in play and get outs.”

Cathedral lost one of its best hitters during the game, but Shelbyville entered the game without its best player, Kentucky commit Aiden Smith, one of the state’s top players. Smith injured his knee sliding into second base during Shelbyville’s sectional semifinal against New Palestine. The team thought Smith might be able to hit in the sectional final against Indian Creek, but the swelling in his knee increased and tests revealed that he’ll need surgery to repair his meniscus. Prickett battled in Smith’s absence, striking out seven over 4⅔ innings, but the Fighting Irish started to time him up, bouncing him in the fifth, and scoring two runs off reliever Austin Martzell. Michael Gallagher led Cathedral with two hits and one RBI. Scout Bushong added a two-RBI double in the seventh.

Shelbyville’s promising season ends with a slight question mark. Baseball is a team game, but Smith is the type of talent who can single handedly swing the outcome of the game. Instead of wallowing in the what ifs, Shelbyville coach Jacon Shively will remember all the success his senior class had this season.

“We’re proud of what they accomplished,” Shively said. “We expected to win every game. It wasn’t just saying that, they saw it. Five losses all season, the ones we did lose could’ve went one way or the other. … We talked about high standards and strong relationships. I told them I’m super proud of that and those are the things after all this is done that they’ll carry with them.”

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: IHSAA Baseball: Cathedral wins regional title over Shelbyville