T.J. Weir hit the first of two home runs to help Class 4A No. 9 Kokomo (11-2) score four times in the top of the first. Central Catholic (11-3), ranked No. 3 in Class A, chipped away with two runs in the bottom half of the first and five runs in the second inning.
Central Catholic's Chas Bobillo picked the right time to hit his first career home run. The third-inning grand slam off of Kokomo reliever Phillip Kuhns all but put the game out of reach.
When the Wildkats threatened to come back with two runs in the fourth inning, Bobillo relived starter Austin Munn and shut hard-hitting Kokomo out over the final 2 2/3 innings.
Central Catholic coach Tim Bordenet said while he wasn't worried about Kokomo's early four-run lead, he knew that the Knights could not allow the advantage to linger.
"With the wind blowing the way it was, you knew you weren't out of the game," Bordenet said. "Kokomo is a very good team and we knew when they scored those runs we had to answer them. We didn't have to get them all back at the same time, but we had to respond."
Weir's two-run homer and Devin Schacht's two-run double provided the Wildkats their early edge.
Kokomo starter Nick Lorenc opened the first by walking Cole Hruskovich and Taylor Glaze. After Scott Windler singled, Lorenc walked Reed Drysdale to score the Knights first run. Reliever Pete Keyes came in and threw a wild pitch to score Glaze.
"This game was frustrating because we didn't pitch well," said Kokomo coach Steve Edwards. "We put a kid out there and hoped he'd pitch well and he didn't. Central Catholic's a great team but we're a good team, too, and we just didn't bring it today."
Weir hit his second home run of the game in the second inning, crushing an 0-1 pitch over the left field wall to increase Kokomo's lead to 5-2.
The Knights made it all back at the bottom of the inning by stringing together six singles. Windler's two-run single and run-scoring hits by Bobillo, Munn and Jason Aldridge gave the Knights a 7-5 edge.
"We have confidence against anyone we play, but playing a big team like this will certainly boost our confidence even more," said Bobillo, who finished the game with five RBIs. "That's a big win for a little Class A school like us."
Central Catholic tacked on four more runs in the fifth inning and two in the sixth inning to end the game on the 10-run rule. Windler finished the game with four hits while Hruskovich had three hits. Glaze drew walks in all five of his at-bats and scored four times.
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