News : Thompson's homer gives Vikings 1-0 win for district championship; VS to play Oskaloosa Wednesday in Sub-State

[embed]https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=aHdU4LcsB3M[/embed] With his future college baseball coach standing just a few yards away, Jared Thompson made the biggest hit of his high school career, hitting a solo homer in the bottom of the fourth inning. His Viking teammates celebrated with him as he touched home plate, scoring what would be the only run of the entire game. Vinton-Shellsburg defeated Benton Community in a pitcher's duel. Scott Wirth struck out eight Bobcat batters, and allowed just three hits in a complete game shutout. Benton pitcher Skylar Frese struck out 9 Viking batters in just six innings, holding one of the most explosive offenses in the state to just three hits. Benton (16-25 going into Monday's district final) never advanced any runners past second base. The Bobcats had advances to the Class 3A District 11 final by beating Grinnell, 9-1 on Friday. Viking coach Jim Struve said the Vikings won because of the formula they have used all year: Strong pitching, good defense and timely hitting. Struve also praised Frese, the only pitcher all season to hold the powerful VS offense to just one run. Frese threw a combination of fast balls, sliders and curve balls to keep the Viking batters guessing. "He pitched a good game. He kept us off balance," says Struve. Biggest hit of high school career: Jared Thompson, known as JT to his VS teammates, holds the game-winning home run ball and the bat he swung to hit it. Thompson said he did not know his home run would leave the park when it left the bat. "I rounded first pretty hard," he said. But soon the cheers erupted from the Viking fans and Viking dugout; Thompson's teammates gathered around home plate to celebrate his fourth homer of the season. A year ago, Thompson was planning on being one of the pitchers on the Viking roster. But an arm injury and a ligament repair operation known among baseball players as Tommy John surgery caused a change in those plans. Instead of taking his turn on the mound, Thompson has been "fantastic" at first base, says his coach. With more than 210 put-outs to his credit this season, Thompson has only made 2 errors and had a fielding percentage of .991 going into Monday's game, which was another errorless performance by him. Those stats are among the best among all high school first basemen in the state. Thompson has accepted a scholarship offer from Iowa Central to play baseball there as a pitcher next season. After surgery last year, doctors cleared him for playing, but not pitching in games. While Thompson, who has been doing some bullpen pitching during his rehabilitation, says he would love to pitch for the Vikings during his senior season, he's happy contributing with his first basemen's mitt -- and his bat.Helping his team win is what matters most, he says. Wirth carried the Vikings the rest of the way, and struck out the final two batters to end the game. The Vikings will host Oskaloosa on Wednesday at 7 p.m. in the Sub-State game. The Indians (27-13) defeated Knoxville in the Class 3A District 12 title game. See more game photos HERE.