July 15th Sports
Substate Championship Baseball
BOONE – Grundy Center’s season came to an end Tuesday night as the Spartans fell to Ridge View, 7-3, in the Class 2A Substate 7 Final, as heard on 99 The Wave and streamed on RadioOnTheGo’s YouTube channel.
The Spartans came out swinging. In the bottom of the first inning, Judd Jirovsky reached base before Pete Lebo launched a two-run home run to right field, his third homer of the postseason, giving Grundy Center an early 2-0 advantage.
After Ridge View trimmed the lead to 2-1 in the third inning, Lebo struck again, ripping an RBI double in the bottom half to restore a two-run cushion at 3-1.
The momentum quickly shifted in the fourth. The Raptors capitalized on a passed ball, an RBI single and a reach on an error to score three runs and take a 4-3 lead. Ridge View added one run in each of the final three innings to seal the victory.
Grundy Center’s best chance to rally came in the fifth inning. Trailing 5-3 with the bases loaded and two outs, Ryder Slifer hit a sinking fly ball to shallow right field, but Ridge View right fielder Jacob Cougill made a sliding catch to end the threat.
The loss ends Grundy Center’s bid for its first state tournament appearance since 2021. The Spartans close the season with an 18-5 record.
Featured Audio Interviews
Grundy Center Baseball Coach Pat Brown, East Marshall Softball Coach Jary Hoskey, West Marshall Softball Coach Jake Randall.
