LEXINGTON — When Grant Zehr’s Whitley County Colonel teammates needed him most, he came through.
Zehr capped off a wonderful career as a Colonel by leading Whitley County’s baseball program to its first-ever KHSAA state championship with an impressive effort on the mound against Shelby County on Saturday.
The State Tournament Most Valuable Player notched his second victory in the state tournament while tossing a complete game, giving up three hits, and one earned run. He also struck out three batters, throwing 96 pitches with 60 of those going for strikes.
Zehr pitched in all four games of the state tournament, going 2-0 with two saves while garnering a 2.17 ERA. He tossed 16 1/3 of an inning, allowing only 12 hits, and five earned runs.
“He’s just an absolute bulldog,” Whitley County coach Jeremy Shope said. “He just grinds it out. When we run Grant Zehr on the mound, you’re not going to get blown away by the (radar) gun. But you’re going to see a guy that gets out there and competes, mixes three pitches, works down in the zone. He has a sound defense behind him, and he knows it.”
Combine the solid defense, and Zehr’s calm, cool, and collected effort on the mound, and you get a Whitley County squad that won 39 games this season, which ranked fourth in the nation, only behind Barbe (Louisiana), Austin Westlake (Texas), and Boyd (Texas) as each school collected 40 wins each.
As for Zehr, he was happy to play a part in his team’s run to a state championship.
“We won the state championship,” he said. “It’s a great feeling. It’s a great team win, we’re a team, that’s what makes it so special. That’s why we went out and won that ball game.”
Zehr, who finished his career with a 27-8 record along with four saves, wasn’t a stranger to coming in to pitch when needed at any point of a ball game.
“I’ve been that guy to throw a bunch of innings, you know, whenever we’re in a bind,” he said. “We got ourselves in a bind a few times in the tournament. I just came in, and I knew to be ready to go out there and pitch my guts out.
“I just felt really steady all of the way through,” Zehr added. “And even my sophomore through my senior year, I have kind of been steady.”
As for winning the state championship, Zehr said he was glad to be a part of a team that enough home the state championship the fans of the program, and community.
“Colonel Nation, I love you guys,” he said. “Thank you guys for coming. It’s been an honor playing for you guys all these years.”
