By Justin Sokeland
WBIW.com
BEDFORD – Somewhere under the dogpile of humanity on the carpeted infield, curled in the fetal position for protection from the avalanche of bodies above, was the happiest guy on the planet, living the fantasy of every baseball player in uniform. From tee ball to the major leagues, nothing beats the thrill of the walk-off win.
Bedford North Lawrence’s hero this time was Nate Pemberton. Or wait, was that “Darrell Johnson”? Actually, they’re one and the same, which needs some explaining. For the moment, the only thing that matters is the senior shortstop wearing No.5 came through in the clutch.
Pemberton, to use the name his parents bestowed, drilled a game-winning hit down the right-field line in the bottom of the seventh inning, powering the Stars to a 2-1 triumph over Evansville Reitz on Friday night. BNL pitchers Walker Ward and Kline Woodward combined on a one-hitter, but it was Pemberton who earned the superhero status as the Stars (4-2) won their third straight game.
After Reitz (2-3) scored an unearned run in the sixth to draw even, BNL rallied in the seventh. Jonny Stone cracked a sharp single to center with one out, and pinch runner Maddox Ray advanced to second on Kyler Fahey’s wild pitch. Pinch hitter Tate Tanksley was hit by a pitch, and that set the stage for Pemberton.
Ok, before Pemberton steals the show . . . Who is this Darrell Johnson? That’s Pemberton’s team nickname, an alter ego he created on a whim. Going out to restaurants with buddies, he would tell the waiter “Darrell Johnson” when asked a name to announce when the wait for a table ended. It stuck. Now “Darrell” is his secret identity.
Back to the bottom of the seventh. Pemberton didn’t wait around. He lashed the first pitch past the diving first baseman and into right field, with Ray racing home for the winning run. Seconds later, as Pemberton launched his batting helmet into the sky in celebration, the entire team descended on him for the mass hug.
“Awesome, the emotions are flying,” Pemberton said of his first career walk-off hit. “It was incredible. I was thinking ‘First pitch, off speed’ to set me off. I hadn’t gotten a hit all day, and I saw a pitch right in my wheelhouse. I was swinging and it had to go somewhere.”
So was that Nate or “Darrell” at the plate? “I think a little bit of both,” he said with a smile. “Darrell Johnson would have put one on the football field.”
Pemberton, stationed ninth in the batting order (or the second lead-off, as BNL coach Jeff Callahan called it), is not the typical last batter. He’s hitting a solid .375, but his contribution is far weightier than that. Callahan has credited BNL’s early success to his leadership and attitude reversal.
“All of it was a mentality thing,” Pemberton said. “I just flipped the switch. I worked every day, all aspects of the sport, and trusted the process.”
“He’s played great,” Callahan said. “He’s been a great example and great leader on the field. It was nice to see him get that big hit.”
Getting to that point didn’t take long, because the pitching was outstanding. BNL finally scratched out a run in the fourth against Reitz starter Ty Wilzbacher. Woodward smoked a double down the left-field line, took third on Ryker Hughes’ sacrifice bunt, and scored on Carter Bennett’s sacrifice fly to left.
The Panthers countered in the sixth. With one out, Nate York hit a dribbler toward third base that Ward fielded but threw wildly as York scampered to second. He reached third after Keifer Parsons flied out to Trace Rynders in right, and he scored when Cooper Davis lined a sharp single to center. That would be the only hit for Reitz.
Woodward (1-0) came on in relief and got big outs in the seventh. He cut down a runner at third on an attempted sacrifice bunt, and Cal Gates tracked down a laser by York in left center to kept the score a 1-1.
Ward struck out three and worked around three walks during his 5 2/3 innings on the mound. Woodward struck out one and walked two, earning the win when Pemberton went full “Darrell” in the seventh. BNL has allowed only one hit in the last 14 innings.
“Battle out there,” Callahan said of the pitching approach. “Don’t try to strike everyone out. Pitch to contact and let your defense help you out.
“These are the types of games we want to be in. We want to play good teams, be challenged, be in tight situations. It’s exciting. The kids are starting to get that belief in themselves. There’s nothing like winning. It’s fun.”
“This team is something special,” Pemberton said. “I’ve never played with such a talented group of men.”
The Stars will visit Bloomington South on Monday.
