XENIA — The Division II, Region 8 championship game between Loveland and Anthony Wayne had a little bit of everything.
Rain dampened the turf diamond in the first few innings, and the Tigers trailed for the first time in the Ohio High School Athletic Association baseball tournament, with a roller coaster of emotions as a consistent theme throughout.
“One team had to get a clutch hit at one point today, and it just happened to be them,” Loveland coach Ryne Terry said. “It was a great regional final game. You couldn’t have asked for anything else.”
Loveland trailed by as much as 3-0, but cut into the Generals’ lead before Blake Carrigan’s first-pitch, game-tying two-run home run eventually sent the game into extra innings. Each team had opportunities to lead or win the game, but Anthony Wayne came away victorious in the bottom of the 11th inning when Mason Dzierwa’s first-pitch hit to center field scored Ben Nieckarz for a 4-3 Anthony Wayne win.
The defeat snapped Loveland’s 12-game win streak and dashed the hopes of making its first state tournament appearance. Meanwhile, Anthony Wayne will make its third trip to the state semifinal, the other years being 2018 and ’23.
Regardless, the Tigers enjoyed their best season in a quarter century. The team advanced to its first regional tournament since 2000, won its first regional semifinal game ever and captured the Eastern Cincinnati Conference outright. The team finished its 2025 campaign with an overall record of 22-8.
“I was proud of what we were able to accomplish all season long. … After the game is over, you have a lot of tears and guys who are upset and rightfully so, but by the time we get on the bus and start heading home, these guys get a chance to reflect on the things they accomplished — back-to-back conference championships, 20 wins and taking a step forward each and every time, it is super exciting for those guys.
“They are going to look back on this and have very, very fond memories of this. This was a super-talented class. They won the ECC title as freshmen and JV, and they won two as juniors and seniors. It is a class that has a lot of experience winning, and it is a class that we will miss a lot. But that is what you want out of your senior class, to lay the groundwork for the younger guys that are here.”
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