The members of the Seidou High School baseball team couldn't help but feel a little reluctant in the end.
After all, the Hoshiryu High School baseball team came from Nagano Prefecture and was from the same hometown as Sawamura.
It really felt a bit too much to completely crush them.
Even though Sawamura himself took action, from his position, it seemed like he could only do it.
If he had shown mercy, wouldn't the other players from Seidou High School's baseball team have been even more clueless about what to do?
Now, since Sawamura had already secured enough points for the Seidou High School baseball team, it seemed there was no need to push further.
In the final moments of the game, the members of the Seidou High School baseball team chose to show mercy.
With an overwhelming lead, someone managed to get on base.
They didn't stick to their previous tactics but instead decided to face the opponent head-on.
If Seidou High School's baseball team had continued their earlier approach, it was still possible to score one or two more points.
That is to say, they could have scored more than 10 points in this game.
But in the end, they chose not to go that route.
With a sufficient lead, they opted for a direct confrontation.
Haruka was an extremely capable player, and in today's game, he had further evolved.
Now fully unleashed, Haruka, along with the rest of the Seidou High School baseball team, found it hard to make solid hits against him.
However, the players of Seidou had already seen the pitching of Nanami until they hit it with their eyes closed.
Ping!
Snap!
"OUT!"
…alright this was an exaggeration. Furuya hit a high fly to the infield and was quickly Out.
But Maezono, Shiratsu, and Toujou got three consecutive hits, pushing the score by two more runs!
The game reached the 9th inning, the last inning.
The total score was 10:2, with Seidou High School leading by 8 points.
From the way Furuya had pitched, it seemed impossible for the Hoshiryu High School baseball team to score from him in the final moments.
It was even fair to say that it was extremely difficult.
"The outcome is decided!"
In the stands, the other teams that had made it to the top eight had already lost interest in continuing to watch the game.
Some players had even started to leave.
Before leaving, several players took a deep glance at the Seidou High School baseball team's dugout.
Their hearts were filled with shock.
To suppress Hoshiryu to this extent was already quite amazing!
What was even more shocking was that the Seidou High School baseball team had done this without even needing to send out their Ace pitcher.
What level had the Seidou High School baseball team reached?
Everyone had the same question in their minds.
Needless to say, Sawamura and Miyuki Kazuya's other purpose, or rather the Seidou High School baseball team's other purpose,
Had already been achieved!
They had planted a deep nail for their future opponents.
The game should have ended here.
But Koshien is never that simple!
In the final inning, the Hoshiryu players launched a rapid offensive,
Causing a lot of trouble for the Seidou team.
Leading off was Oda, who had been unable to hit Furuya's pitches earlier.
This time, he adopted a bunt stance and got so close to the strike zone that his body almost touched it.
Miyuki understood that the Hoshiryu players were anxious.
The game was about to end!
Most of the Hoshiryu players were third-years.
That meant their high school careers were about to end.
There were only three Outs left.
How could they not give their all?
Though Miyuki knew the opponents were desperate, Oda's approach still caught him off guard.
Even though Furuya's form wasn't perfect, his pitch speed was still above 150 km/h.
Standing in the catcher's position, the speed of the ball was absolutely astounding.
Except for a few select players, most couldn't react in time to such speed.
That meant if Furuya made even the smallest mistake,
It was very likely that the ball would hit Oda.
Being hit by such a pitch felt like being hit by a car traveling at 150 km/h.
If it hit in the wrong spot, it could cost someone their life.
Why was Furuya's pitch so difficult to bunt?
The reason was simple: the ball was too fast and too intimidating!
For hitters, just facing it normally was difficult enough.
Let alone attempting a bunt!
Not reacting properly was completely normal.
Oda, who got so close to the strike zone,
Was practically inviting death.
What was he trying to do?
Miyuki couldn't figure it out.
Oda seemed like a person with no real special traits. He always smiled at everyone and didn't seem particularly noticeable.
He seemed easy to get along with.
But it was precisely this kind of person that made it hard to guess what was on their mind.
Uncertain, Miyuki gave Furuya the sign to throw a fastball to the outside corner.
There was no other choice. Though Furuya had made great improvements over the past year,
His control was still one of his biggest weaknesses.
With the batter standing so close, throwing an inside pitch would be far too risky.
If it hit him, Seidou High School would be finished.
Reluctantly, Miyuki called for a pitch to the outside corner.
It was clear that Oda had anticipated this move.
He swung at the ball and made contact.
A player who had been unable to hit the ball before suddenly made solid contact with the first pitch.
Even the Seidou High School players were shocked.
In their astonishment, their reaction was a beat too slow,
And the ball flew right past them!
At the final moment, Hoshiryu High School miraculously got a single.
Then Tsuchihara came in.
PING!
With a gambling wild swing, he got a lucky hit!
Oda made it to second base.
Later, although Masamoto failed to get a hit, he managed to advance Oda to third base.
With one Out and a runner on second and third,
The fourth batter, Nanami, put all of his frustration on his bat and swung with whatever power he had left, pushing the ball to the outfield.
Shiratsu caught it, but the ball had traveled so far over 70 meters,
Even with Shiratsu's speed, he couldn't throw it in time.
Perhaps if it were Sawamura or Toujou, it would have been a bit easier.
After all, they were pitchers and might have been able to make a timely throw.
Though even that was a slim chance.
The ball takes too long to travel 70 meters,
And then, getting it back to the catcher's mitt accurately was nearly impossible.
Reluctantly, the Seidou High School team could only watch as Oda crossed home plate.
The score immediately changed to 10:3.
Hoshiryu player did everything to get back some of their dignity.
And they did.
Seidou players were furious, staring at their opponents.
Though they had suffered a big blow in the game,
These things couldn't change the outcome.
The gap between the teams was just too great!
It was so big, it was almost unimaginable.
Finally, the score remained unchanged.
Hosho Okuchi's hit was caught by Sawamura in the outfield.
Snap!
"OUT!!!"
"Game over! In the Summer Koshien, the game to decide who advances to the semifinals, the first team to grab the qualification is the undefeated Seidou High School baseball team!!!"
…