HUDSON — Chardon baseball came within one win of a regional final appearance, but a pair of fourth-inning runs proved to be the difference Wednesday as the Hilltoppers fell to Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy, 2-0, in a Division III Regional 17 semifinal at Hudson High School.
One of the reasons the loss was so difficult, according to co-head coach Bob Francis, had little to do with the scoreboard.
“We like being together as coaches with the kids,” Francis said. “It didn’t hit me really until I was getting some of the paperwork ready for regionals. We went through a couple of bad spells during the season, and seeing how the seniors rallied the team and how the underclassmen responded to pull out of that and get us here is really commendable. Those are life skills right there.”
The Hilltoppers and Royals battled through three scoreless innings behind strong pitching performances before CVCA finally broke through in the fourth.
Zac Anderson delivered an RBI single to right field to score Alex Mommone and give the Royals a 1-0 lead. Moments later, a wild pitch allowed Mommone to cross the plate for a second run and a 2-0 advantage.
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That was all the offense CVCA would need, though Chardon remained within striking distance thanks to another standout outing from junior pitcher Tim Robertson.
Robertson worked all six innings, allowing two runs on five hits while striking out nine and walking two.
“Tim’s just a competitor,” said Chardon co-head coach Greg Fronk. “He brings four pitches into every game, whether they’re strikes or not. I don’t know what he does out there to get the opponents to swing or keep them off balance, but he’s just a dawg. He’s got one more year with us, and we hope he carries us again next year.”
Offensively, opportunities were limited against the Royals. Jayden Buth accounted for Chardon’s lone hit, finishing 1-for-3 at the plate.
While the defeat ended the season, it did little to diminish what the Hilltoppers accomplished during the spring. Chardon captured a district championship and advanced to the regional semifinals despite entering the year with a long-term goal of reaching that stage within three seasons.
“We told them at the beginning of the season, three years to reach regionals, but first year we’re here,” Fronk said. “We’re planning on doing it again. These seniors carried us this year, and now we’ve got some dudes that have to step up.”
The future appears bright for the Hilltoppers, who will graduate only five seniors and return the core of a pitching staff that helped power the postseason run.
“I would say that they all love baseball,” Francis said. “Our seniors do too, but the underclassmen love baseball. They’re gonna carry this on through the summer and hopefully into a productive offseason before next spring.”
Among the key returners will be Robertson, JB Burton, and John Timko, giving Chardon an experienced foundation heading into 2027.
“Tim’s coming back, JB Burton’s coming back, John Timko is coming back, and we’ve got a few other juniors and sophomores ready to go,” Fronk said. “This year, we came in knowing we’re gonna have to find hitters, and these guys surprised us. We were hitting up until today, so we got pitching coming back again, and now the focus is getting to the regionals the next two years, thanks to the arms we have coming back.”
Chardon closes the season with an 18-13 record, a district championship trophy, and a postseason run that provided a glimpse of what may be ahead for a program returning much of its roster next spring.
Top Players
- Tim Robertson (Chardon): Complete game, 5 hits allowed, 2 earned runs, 2 walks, 9 strikeouts.
- Jayden Buth (Chardon): 1-for-3, team’s lone hit.
