Jeffersonville’s Drew Campbell was named the Southern Indiana Baseball Player of the Year on Tuesday night at The Courier-Journal Kentuckiana Sports Awards Banquet presented by Norton Sports Health.

The senior Onley Central College signee led the 20-5 Red Devils in runs scored (30), hits (35), RBIs (27) and home runs (8) this past season.

Sectional competition begins Wednesday, May 25, and continues through Monday, May 30 (Memorial Day), with the 64 champions advancing to a four‐team regional on Saturday, June 4. Two semifinal games will be played early that day at each site with the two winners returning for a championship game that evening. The 16 regional winners will be assigned to four semi‐state sites and play a single game on Saturday, June 11, with the winners moving into their respective state championship game.

Sectionals
Dates: May 25‐30, 2016.
Times: Determined by host school. (Floyd Central)
Admission: $6 per session; $10 season (Season tickets may be provided for tourneys with three or more sessions).
Home Team: The second‐named team in each pairing is the designated home team except when they advance by virtue of a bye. Exception: In six‐team
sectionals, the teams drawing the bye will play in the second semifinal game (Game 4) and will be the visitor in the championship game.

Sectional 15. To Be Played at Floyd Central (6)
G1: Seymour vs. Jeffersonville. Wed May 25 5:00
G2: Jennings County vs. Floyd Central. Wed May 25
G3: Winner of G1 vs. Winner of G2. Sat May 28 12:00
G4: Bedford North Lawrence vs. New Albany. Sat May 28
Championship: Winner of G3 vs. Winner of G4. Mon May 30 2:00

Bold are games we would play in the bracket with wins. Single Elimination

By TOM WHITUS sports@newsandtribune.com
JEFFERSONVILLE — Three New Albany pitchers combined to give up six walks during a disastrous fourth inning and host Jeffersonville took advantage

The Red Devils scored six times in the fourth on their way to a 10-2 win in the Hoosier Hills Conference tournament final Saturday afternoon at Don Poole Field.

“Our pitching has been really good all year, we kind of fell apart,” said New Albany coach Chris McIntyre.

The fourth-inning meltdown by the Bulldogs overshadowed a big effort by Jeffersonville’s Drew Campbell, who went 4-for-4 with a home run and three runs batted in.

Campbell had gone 0-for-4 against Jennings County in Friday’s semifinal, but bounced back with a lead off 320-foot blast over the right field fence off of New Albany starter Justin Striegel (4-2).

The Red Devils added another run in the second inning when Campbell singled to score Jeremiah Phelps.

“That’s a sign of maturity,” Jeffersonville coach Derek Ellis said of Campbell. “Senior leadership steps up and sets the tone.”

Leading 2-0 and pitching a no-hitter through three innings, Jeffersonville starter Gabe Bierman (4-2) found trouble in the Bulldogs fourth.

A one-out double by Chase Rudy — New Albany’s first hit of the game — got the surge started. Rudy was at third when Bierman gave up a walk to Timmie Redford. With runners at first and third, an infield error by the Red Devils scored Rudy. A single by Jacob Mullins scored Redford and the game was tied at 2-2.

Having fought back to tie the game, the Bulldog pitchers had difficulty finding the strike zone and New Albany had a lot of trouble getting out of the Red Devils half of the fourth inning.

Phelps got the game-deciding rally started with an infield single. A walk to Bierman chased Striegel. He was relieved by Rudy.

A sacrifice bunt by Trey Dempsey advanced the runners to second and third. Phelps scored the go-ahead run on a passed ball. Rudy proceeded to walk Jack Ellis before Campbell delivered an RBI single to make it 4-2.

Three straight walks delivered to Ian Ellis, Joe Burke and Bailey Falkenstein made it was 6-2. After a short outing, Rudy was relieved by Logan Charbonneau, who found trouble as well.

Charbonneau walked Cam Northern to score another run, then Phelps singled to score Burke and make it 8-2.

“It was an equal walk-fest,” McIntyre said. “It was not for lack of trying, but we just didn’t execute.”

The Red Devils created the final margin in the fifth when Ellis hit a sacrifice fly that scored two runs.

Despite a conference tournament title win over a rival, Coach Ellis was hesitant to dwell on it too much — not with the post season just a couple of weeks away.

“This is sectional-type baseball,” Ellis said of the competition in the HHC tournament.

Both teams have things to work on before the postseason. Jeffersonville had two infield errors and New Albany finished with 10 walks.

Jeffersonville, which is ranked No. 7 in Class 4A, improved to 15-3. Sixth-ranked New Albany fell to 19-6.

HOOSIER HILLS CONFERENCE

CHAMPIONSHIP

New Albany 000 200 0— 2 3 1

Jeffersonville 110 620 x—10 8 2

W — Gabe Bierman (4-2). L — Justin Striegel (4-2). 2B — Chase Rudy (NA). HR — Drew Campbell (J). Records — Jeffersonville 15-3, New Albany 19-6.

By TOM WHITUS sports@newsandtribune.com
JEFFERSONVILLE — Clutch hitting and a fine effort by pitcher Ian Ellis helped Jeffersonville to a 4-0 win
over visiting Jennings County in the Hoosier Hills Conference tournament semifinal Friday evening at Don Poole Field.

The Red Devils (14-3) — ranked No. 7 in Class 4-A — scored all four runs with two outs. The timely hitting that backed up a 3-hit, 9-strikeout effort by Ellis, who helped his own cause by going 4-for-4.

“It was good they found a way to grind it out, to find a way to win,” Jeffersonville coach Derek Ellis said of his team’s timely hitting.

Jeffersonville advances to host No. 6-ranked New Albany in the Hoosier Hills Conference tournament final at Don Poole Field this morning at 11 a.m.

Jennings County threatened early when Owen Land got to first on an infield error in the first inning. He advanced to second on a fielders’ choice but advanced no further.

Jeffersonville answered with a threat of its own in the bottom of the inning – and the Devils made it pay off.

Ellis got the Red Devils started with a one out single against Panthers starter Justin Pettit. Justin Thomas, a courtesy runner for Ellis, went to second on a passed ball. Thomas was at third base with two outs when Bailey Falkenstein hit an RBI double to the right-center field wall. Falkenstein stole third but was stranded there.

Leading 1-0 and with two outs in the third inning, the Red Devils got some more timely hits to expand on their lead.

Ellis sparked the two out surge with his second single of the game. Thomas, again the courtesy runner, scored on a single by Joe Burke, who went to second on the unsuccessful throw to the plate.

Burke went on to steal third on a bobbled pitch and scored on a single by Cam Northern to make it 3-0. With two runs in, the Red Devils looked to push more across but stranded runners at second and third.

Jennings County looked to get on the board when Pettit helped his own cause with a two-out double in the top of the fourth. It was the Panthers’ first hit against Ellis, who tossed his sixth strikeout of the game to quickly squelch the threat.

Jacob Wingate relieved Pettit for the Panthers in the bottom of the fifth – and he, too, gave up a single to Ellis. This time, however, Thomas was caught trying to steal second before Burke hit a ground out.

With two outs – again – Falkenstein singled and Northern drew a walk. With runners at first and second, Jeremiah Phelps hit an RBI single to score Falkenstein and make it 4-0.

The Red Devils loaded the bases but couldn’t add to their lead.

The Panthers made it a bit more interesting in the top of the seventh. Leading off the inning, Avery Johnson singled and Pettit hit his second double of the game off of Ellis.

With runners at second and third and none out, Ellis (5-1) notched his final two strikeouts and coaxed a fly out to end the game.

“We were close,” Derek Ellis said of going to a reliever. “That’s your senior stepping up. He didn’t want to come out.”

HOOSIER HILLS CONFERENCE

SEMIFINAL

Jennings Co. 000 000 0–0 3 0

Jeffersonville 102 010 x–4 8 1

W – Ian Ellis (5-1). L – Justin Pettit (0-5). 2B – Bailey Falkenstein (Jeff), Justin Pettit (JC) 2. Records – Jeffersonville 14-3, Jennings County 5-10.

BY KEVIN HARRIS News & Tribune
SEYMOUR — When people think of the prototypical leadoff hitter, they envision a player who collects base hits, steals bases and scores runs.

On Wednesday night at American Legion Field in Seymour, Jeffersonville leadoff hitter Drew Campbell showed he can drive in runs and hit for power as well.

The Red Devil senior went 3-for-4 with two home runs, a double and seven RBIs to lead the Class 4A No. 7 Red Devils to a 15-1 victory in five innings over Seymour in the first round of the Hoosier Hills Conference. Campbell also scored three times.

“That’s a good day. That’s a good week, let alone a good day,” Jeff head coach Derek Ellis said. “Drew has been doing it all year. He’s the guy that makes things go for us. When he’s on, we feed off of him and good things happen. You don’t expect your leadoff guy to have two home runs. You expect him to get on base and make some things happen. He’s just having a phenomenal year. It’s All-State caliber, no doubt.”

Jeffersonville (13-3) will host Jennings County in the HHC Tournament semifinals at 6 tonight at Don Poole Field. The Panthers knocked off Columbus East 5-3 in eight innings in the opening round Wednesday.

The game finally got played after it was rained out Monday and Tuesday. Ellis said he was unsure how his team would perform after not playing the first two games this week.

“It was hard to expect what we were going to see after the layoff. When you have a lot of time in between games, you’re hoping that the team is going to show up and be ready to play,” Ellis said. “I’m just glad that we came out with some intensity and played extremely well.”

Campbell’s bat was hot right from the outset, as he hit a solo shot off Owls starter Ryan Weineke to start the game to put the Red Devils up 1-0. The ball landed on the Seymour tennis courts, located near the fence in right-center field.

Jeff first baseman Joe Burke followed with an RBI double, then scored on a Bailey Falkenstein single in the top of the first inning to extend Jeff’s lead to 3-0.

After Seymour (9-7) scored its lone run in the bottom of the first, Campbell struck again in the second.

With runners on first and second base and no outs, he sent another Weineke pitch over the right-center field wall for a three-run blast to up the advantage to 6-1.

The Red Devils put four more runs on the scoreboard in the top of the third.

With two out and the bases loaded, Campbell got his double that landed in shallow center to plate two runs to put Jeff up seven. Campbell took advantage of some porous Owl defense as he raced to second base when no Seymour fielder was covering the bag.

The next batter, third baseman Ian Ellis laced a single down the third-base line to knock in two more runs to increase the Red Devil lead 10-1.

Four more runs came across the plate in the top of the fourth. Jeremiah Phelps drove in two of those runs with two singles to left with one out versus Owl reliever Tiller Cummings. After that, Jeff pinch-hitter Jordan Thomas drew a bases-loaded walk and Campbell got his seventh RBI with a sacrifice fly to right to score Chris Downs.

The Red Devils’ final run happened in the fifth when pinch-hitter Jack Ellis smacked an RBI double with none out.

Falkenstein went 2-for-3 with two runs scored and an RBI, while Ian Ellis had a 2-for-4 game with a run scored and an RBI. Thomas, Downs and teammate Jacob Cochrum each came home twice.

Jeff starter Cam Northern got the victory in his first decision of the season. The right-hander pitched four innings, surrendering one earned run on three hits. Northern had six strikeouts and two walks.

“Cameron didn’t have his best stuff. He didn’t have the velocity that he usually has,” Coach Ellis said. “But with that being said, we scored three in the first and it takes a little pressure off of him. We’d like to see Cameron be a little bit more aggressive early when you have the lead and going right at some guys, but he seemed to be a little too fine and he was messing up, but all in all, he pitched a nice ballgame for really his first start of the year.”

Phelps relieved Northern in the bottom of the fifth. In his lone inning of work, Phelps allowed no hits and struck out two.

The Red Devils defeated Jennings County 10-0 at home on April 12.

“I’m assuming they threw their No. 1 [pitcher] and I’m assuming Columbus threw their No. 1, so I like our chances,” Derek Ellis said. “But [Jennings head coach] Gabe [Lowman] is a pretty good coach and he’s got some pretty good players and it’s Hoosier Hills Conference, so we better be ready to play.”

HHC TOURNAMENT

FIRST ROUND

JEFFERSONVILLE 15, SEYMOUR 1

Jeffersonville 334 41—15 12 0

Seymour 100 00— 1 3 2

W — Cam Northern (1-0). L — Ryan Weineke (2-4). 2B — Drew Campbell (J), Joe Burke (J), Jack Ellis (J), Satoshi Hirose (S). HR — Campbell 2 (J). Records — Jeffersonville 13-3, Seymour 9-7.