Campbell County’s six-season streak of advancing to the 10th Region championship baseball game has come to an end.
The Camels were plagued by an error-stricken fifth inning, causing them to fall to
Bourbon County in the 10th Region tournament semifinals, 3-1.
It was a pitchers duel, Camels Zach Franzen striking out 10 batters, Colonels pitcher Aiden Earlywine striking out seven.
Campbell County committed two of their three errors in a pivotal fifth inning, helping the Colonels put up three runs. With one out and two runners on base, Jake Scott delivered a line drive to centerfield for an RBI and a 1-0 lead.
Then came Aiden Earlywine, who put the ball in play and due to an error, reached
first base while Matthew Yazell scored. Adding to the Camels’ woes, another error
ensued on the same play, granting Earlywine the chance to capitalize and score.
“It’s high school kids, this is high school baseball,” Campbell County coach Scott
Schweitzer said. “People forget that. Most of them are 16-17 years old and still haven’t
figured anything out yet. At the end of the day, errors happen. They gave everything
they had.”
The Camels narrowed the lead to two runs in the bottom of the fifth inning as Parker
Schweitzer took advantage of one of two Bourbon County errors in the game.
Both pitchers showcased their skill down the stretch. Franzen issued just one walk
over six innings, allowing six hits. Earlywine gave up four hits while walking two batters.
“At one time Aiden was leading the region in wins. He had seven wins going into
tournament play. He’s a soft lefty, five-year starter, with a lot of experience. He
doesn’t get shaken,” Bourbon County coach Nelson Faris said. “Franzen also threw
well. We’ve faced two good pitchers in both games and somehow, we got by Franzen
tonight.”
The game was much quieter on the offensive side. Bourbon County accumulated
five hits, while Campbell County had four. Carson Clark, Tyler Schumacher, Parker Schweitzer, and Daxton Straus had the hits for the Camels.
Jake Scott and Aiden Earlywine each had an RBI for the Colonels, while Xavier
Baker, Kaden Hilander, Jaxson, and Aidan Vires all had a hit.
The Colonels advance to the region championship for the first time since 2014,
where they will meet up with a upset-minded Mason County team that defeated the
defending champions, Harrison County, 4-3 in the quarterfinals, and one of the top
teams in the region, GRC, 6-3, in the semifinals.
The game will be played Friday night at 6 p.m. at Bourbon County.
Campbell County graduates 13 seniors as their season ends at 21-13.
“My son Parker is a senior. I’ve had these kids since they were seven, eight years old,”
Schweitzer said. “I watched them play summer ball, after summer ball. It wasn’t like I
was going as a high school coach. I was going as a dad. It’s really tough seeing these
13 kids out.”
Despite the loss of key players, the Camels remain confident that their success in
the region isn’t over.
“It’s our district’s turn to host next year for a region tournament,” Schweitzer said
“We’ll be back. We’re not going to rebuild; we’re going to reload. We will be right
back here to take care of business like we’re supposed to.”
COLONELS 3, CAMELS 1
BOURBON COUNTY — 000-030-0 — 3-5-2
CAMPBELL COUNTY — 000-010-0 — 1-4-3
WP — Earlywine. LP —Franzen.
Records: Bourbon County 22-8, Campbell County 21-13