Hot Stove baseball: Ethan Parsons' strong outing leads North Ridgeville past Grafton-Midview in Class G opener

NORTH RIDGEVILLE — Ethan Parsons didn't need much run support, but he got it anyway. North Ridgeville scored seven unanswered runs through the first five innings while Parsons was perfect on the mound through that span as the Outlaws defeated Grafton-Midview 8-3 in the opening round of the Hot Stove Class G (ages 11-12) Lorain Regional at Palmer Field on Saturday afternoon. The Outlaws will face the Westlake Demons today at 3:30 p.m. in the quarterfinals at Grafton Reservoir Park. The winner of the regional will qualify for the Alliance State tournament at Butler Rodman Park on July 19-20. "I just looked at the zone and followed through," Parsons said. "I just throw strikes and keep following. It feels really good (to advance)." Parsons was unhittable through the first 15 batters, and while he ran into a little trouble in the sixth, he ultimately allowed just three runs, one earned, on three hits with no walks and 10 strikeouts. "Ethan did a fantastic job," North Ridgeville coach Joseph Johnston said. "I couldn't be more proud of him. This is what we worked all season for. He did an awesome job. His teammates are happy and the parents and fans are happy." The Outlaws offense needed one time through the order to get on the board. They left the bases loaded in the second inning, but rattled off three hits and a walk in four straight at-bats to open the third, including an RBI triple from Nolan Keszei and a two-RBI double from Dylan Urquhart. Adrian Torres capped the four-run inning with an RBI single to left. "Dylan has been that power hitter that we need," Johnston said. "He cleans up the bases for us. Every single boy on our team goes up to swing the bat. We don't have too many that look at third strikes. They go up to bat and want to get on base. That's what the goal is." North Ridgeville scored three unearned runs in the fifth thanks to two Grafton-Midview errors. Torres got his second RBI of the day with a double to left field. But Grafton-Midview struck back in the sixth, opening the inning with three straight hits, including an RBI single by Nolan Lehota to break up the shutout. It looked as if Parsons got North Ridgeville out of the inning after back-to-back strikeouts, but two more runs scored on an error. The Outlaws scored an unearned insurance run in the sixth and Parsons retired the side in order with two strikeouts to close the game. "Our season was going well," Grafton-Midview coach Stephanie Edwards said. "We were on a six-game winning streak. It's sad to see it end, but I think we're looking good for next year. We've been together a long time as a team. We're on the young end this year. I think we'll come back stronger next year." Contact Chris Sweeney at (440) 329-7135 or ctsports@chroniclet.com. Follow him @CSweeney1686 on X.