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2026 OHSAA Tournament: Division VII State Final - #7 Delphos St. John's vs #27 Leipsic

AKRON - A six-run second inning propelled Delphos St. John's to its first state baseball championship in school history on Saturday night in a 10-0 six-inning victory over Leipsic.

"It means a lot to be part of this team," DSJ head coach Jerry Jackson said. "They're the ones that took me for this ride. I love it. I'm so proud of these guys. They go out and they compete and they play the game the right way. They know how to pitch, they know when to hit. That's what we repped on all year. We believed in ourselves."

The first seven batters reached base for DSJ in the second inning against three Leipsic pitchers, with Aidan Swick, Braden Lindeman and Tyce McClain producing RBI singles and Cam Elwer capping the frame off with a two-run double.

The Jays added two in the fifth with Andrew Elwer hitting a leadoff double and scoring a run in an inning the featured five hits. 

The winning pitcher capped it off in the sixth with a one-out single and scored on a walk-off hit by senior Maddox Kroeger.

"It was awesome," Andrew Elwer said of touching home plate with the winning run. "It's something we worked so hard for. I'm just glad to do it with these guys."

The junior right-hander struck out eight and walked just one in his five-hit masterpiece, getting out of a second-and-third no-out threat in the top of the sixth with a strikeout and a line drive catch he turned into a double play. 

"Just being ahead with the curve," he said about the keys to success on the mound. "When I strive the most is when I get ahead with that curveball and it's 0-1."

After Delphos won a state crown in basketball back in March, sights were set on doing it on the ballfield.

"We've been successful in baseball since we've been little," noted Cam Elwer. "It's been in the back of our minds. We were peaking at the right time and it showed."

Jackson felt it was only a matter of time before it happened.

"We've been to the district finals twice," the DSJ mentor noted. "We played Minster twice and they beat us 2-0 and 1-0 and they go on to win the whole darn thing. We couldn't get past that hump. One year we got to the regional finals and St. Henry beat us. It's always been conference foes that knocked us out of the tournament. But this year we didn't play any except for New Knoxville."

The Blue Jays outscored the opposition 75-7 in tournament play to finish the season at 20-7.

Myles Camareno had a single and double for the 27th-ranked Vikings, which end their campaign with an 18-10 record.

HOT TAKES

PLAYER OF THE GAME: Andrew Elwer dominated on the mound and added two hits, two runs and an RBI. His defense helped the cause in the top of the second when McClain made a nice backhand pick up and throw to first for the final out, preventing Leipsic from tying the game at 1-1. "Tyson has been good all year," the 2027 RHP said of the DSJ second baseman, a four-year starter. "He's our guy that keeps our team together. When the ball is hit to him he makes plays."

D-VII TOURNEY MVP: After spending the week at basketball practice and conditioning for Furman, Cam Elwer flew back to Detroit and arrived at the state tournament on Thursday. The long trip did not show for the senior standout, who was the winning pitcher against top-ranked Tiffin Calvert in Friday's 5-3 semifinal win and he then had a two-run double to cap off the big second inning for the Blue Jays.

WHAT'S NEXT?: Leipsic is loaded with underclassmen, including the top five in the batting order. Darren Henry has been around a long time in charge of the program with 414 victories in his 25 years at the Putnam County school. It was 50 years since Leipsic's only other state appearance. ... The middle of the defense graduates for DSJ, with the starting catcher, SS, second baseman and center fielder in the state finals all seniors. But Elwer, the winning pitcher, brings hope to the 2027 season with four other starters from Saturday's victory bringing back additional experience for Jackson, who has been the head coach for a dozen years. 

LINESCORE

Leipsic                      000  000  -   0    5  3
Delphos St. John's  160  021  -  10  12  0

Records: Delphos St. John's 20-7, Leipsic 18-10.

Winning Pitcher: Andrew Elwer (6 innings, 0 runs, 5 hits, 8 strikeouts, 1 walk).

Losing Pitcher: Colin Niese (1 inning, 3 runs, 1 hit, 0 strikeouts, 1 walk). Others: Mill Paniagua, Julian Zuniga.

Leading Hitters: (Leipsic) - Aaron Hazelton 2 singles; Myles Camareno single, double. (Delphos St. John's) - Tyce McCain single, 2 runs, RBI; Cam Elwer double, 2 RBIs; Andrew Elwer single, double, 2 runs, RBI; Maddox Kroeger single, RBI; Drake Fittro 2 singles, run; Logan Duncan single, 2 runs; Jason Wiechart run; Aidan Swick 2 singles, RBI; Braden Lindeman 2 singles, RBI.

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