Bishop Carroll baseball punches state ticket, gives Charlie Ebright win No. 500
Charlie Ebright has won enough baseball games at Bishop Carroll that he figured No. 500 would arrive eventually.
That did not make Tuesday night any less meaningful.
Not when it came on the same night Carroll earned its way back to the Class 5A state tournament. Not when it came one year after the Golden Eagles were stunned in extra innings in a regional final and missed state for the first time in nearly a decade. Not when it came on the road, in unfamiliar territory, with Carroll needing two wins in one day to make the milestone and the celebration line up perfectly.
That is exactly what the Golden Eagles delivered.
Behind another dominant pitching performance and a steady offensive approach, Carroll beat host Goddard 5-2 in Tuesday’s regional championship game to clinch the program’s return to state and give Ebright his 500th career victory.
“Going back to state is the bigger deal in my mind,” Ebright said. “With how disappointing last year was to miss out, tonight was a little bit of redemption. I knew 500 was going to come at some point, so I guess it’s pretty cool that it happened on the same night where we got to celebrate a few different things.”
Ebright, in his 26th season as Carroll’s head coach, now owns a 500-120 career record, an .807 winning percentage, three state championships, 16 City League titles and 19 state tournament appearances.
The latest trip was earned the way Carroll has won most of its games this season: with pitching, defense and enough timely swings to separate.
Carroll opened the day with a 6-1 win over Hays, as Hunter Axline scattered four hits and allowed one unearned run over six innings. Brock Thompson finished the game with a scoreless seventh inning .The Golden Eagles gave Axline an early cushion with a four-run second inning. Judd Blasi walked, Jonah Mull ripped a triple down the right-field line, Jadan Hunter doubled and Luke Roberts added another RBI later in the inning. Hunter pushed the lead to 6-0 in the third with a two-run single.
The Golden Eagles had done the math before the postseason. They knew Ebright needed 19 wins to reach 500. They also knew the only way to get there Tuesday was to win the regional final and make it back to state.
Goddard, which beat Salina South 9-0 in the other semifinal, stood in the way.
“We knew that if we played good baseball, we were good enough to win this regional,” Ebright said. “We just had to focus on playing good defense, having that mature approach at the plate and then our pitching has been our strength.”
Carroll looked comfortable from the start, despite playing a regional final away from its home field.
Axline’s sacrifice fly gave the Golden Eagles a 1-0 lead in the third. Carroll stretched the lead in the fourth, when Harrison King delivered an RBI single, Roberts followed with another run-scoring single, Brody Lubbers drew a bases-loaded walk and Blasi added an RBI single to make it 5-0.
That was plenty for K.J. McGill, who struck out 10 and allowed two earned runs over six innings.
Goddard made its push in the sixth. Taylor Cape led off with a single, Dawson McFadden followed with an RBI single and another run scored on a balk. With two runners in scoring position, McGill found one more strikeout to keep Carroll’s lead at 5-2.
Mull took the ball in the seventh and left no room for drama, striking out the first two hitters before a flyout ended the game.
The Golden Eagles poured out of the dugout with two celebrations waiting for them: another state tournament berth and a milestone win for the coach who has turned Carroll into one of the state’s most consistent baseball powers.
“I’m proud of the culture and the program that we have built here to make Bishop Carroll a baseball school,” Ebright said. “I think the kids coming into the program understand the expectations that we’re going to be one of the top 5A teams in the state every year. Hopefully that gives them both confidence and some drive to keep that as a reality.”
Carroll’s return to state comes after a season that required some adjustments. The Golden Eagles have been without two all-state caliber outfielders, Aedyn Acosta and Wyatt Fulfer, because of injuries, taking away two strong defenders and two important bats from the lineup.
They have still found enough depth to make another run.
Blasi, a senior leader, has paced the offense with a team-best .408 average, 34 runs and 36 RBIs. Axline, King, Mull, Bode Lubbers, Hunter and Drew Niedens have all helped lengthen the lineup.
On the mound, Carroll has been even more reliable. Axline now owns a 0.61 ERA in 23 innings, while McGill has anchored the staff with 61 strikeouts in more than 43 innings.
Ebright also pointed to the coaches around him — Paul Sanagorski, Brent Holman, Craig Holbrook and Tony Trujillo — and the long line of players who have helped build Carroll’s standard over the last quarter-century.
“I’m still loving it,” Ebright said. “I’m still having fun every single day. I love coaching up the boys and the relationships that you have with players and coaches. So I get up every day and I love my job, both as a teacher and as a coach. Spring time is always a good time for me.”
Carroll will have to wait until Wednesday’s games are completed to learn its state quarterfinal opponent.
Under a new KSHSAA postseason format this season, all Class 5A quarterfinals will be played at neutral sites on Tuesday, May 26. Carroll will play in Salina, Emporia or Overland Park with the winners advancing to the 5A semifinals at Eck Stadium on Wichita State’s campus on Thursday, May 28. The championship and third-place games will be played there Friday, May 29.
Tuesday’s Kansas high school baseball regional scores
Class 6A scores
at Lawrence Free State
Lawrence Free State 15, Topeka 0 (final)
Lawrence Free State 11, Liberal 0
Topeka 7, Wichita East 3
at Washburn Rural
Washburn Rural 3, Derby 1 (final)
Washburn Rural 9, Campus 0
Derby 7, Dodge City 3
Class 5A scores
at Goddard
Bishop Carroll 5, Goddard 2 (final)
Goddard 9, Salina South 0
Bishop Carroll 6, Hays 1
at Kapaun Mt. Carmel
Kapaun Mt. Carmel 7, Maize South 4 (final)
Kapaun Mt. Carmel 4, Arkansas City 3
Maize South 1, Emporia 0
at Salina Central
Salina Central 2, Topeka Seaman 0 (final)
Salina Central 10, Newton 3
Topeka Seaman 3, Eisenhower 1
Class 4A scores
at Concordia
Concordia 7, Lyons 6 (final)
Concordia 10, Chapman 0
Lyons 4, Clearwater 3
at McPherson
McPherson 8, Andale 3 (final)
McPherson 7, Buhler 0
Andale 9, Circle 8
at Mulvane
Mulvane 11, Rose Hill 0 (final)
Mulvane 7, Abilene 0
Rose Hill 6, Clay Center 2
at Pratt
Pratt 7, Augusta 1 (final)
Pratt 12, Larned 0
Augusta 2, Ulysses 0
Class 3A scores
at Burlington
Burlington 5, Southeast of Saline 1
Burlington 6, Haven 3
Southeast of Saline 2, Chaparral 1
at Colby
Colby 8, Beloit 2 (final)
Colby 2, Smoky Valley 1
Beloit 12, Cimarron 6
Class 2-1A scores
at Spearville
Spearville 13, Stanton County 3 (final)
Spearville 8, Inman 7
Stanton County 9, Hutchinson Trinity 8
at Thomas More Prep
Thomas More Prep 16, Little River 1 (final)
Thomas More Prep 9, Medicine Lodge 0
Little River 12, Bucklin 1
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