Russia falls to Hiland in D-IV baseball state final

Russia High School’s quest for a second straight state baseball championship ended with a 14-4 loss to Berlin Hiland in the Division IV final on Saturday at Canal Park in Akron.

Russia rallied from a 4-0 deficit, tying the game with a four-run fourth, only to give up six runs in the fifth, three in the sixth and one in the seventh.

Hiland (30-1) won its second state championship and first since 2016. Cody Yoder and Nick Yoder each had three hits for HIland.

Hiland pitchers struck out 13 batters and limited Russia to three hits. Zane Shappie, Braylon Cordonnier and Brayden Monnin drove in runs for Russia.

Russia finished the season with a mark of 26-7. This was its fifth trip to the championship game. It won the state title in 1971 and 2022 and was runner-up in 1975 and 2017.

Russia advanced with a 1-0 eight-inning victory against St. Henry on Thursday.

About the Author