Junior Sox close out Omaha pool play with win
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OMAHA, Neb. — After closing out Friday’s 9-8 win over Hickman-Norris, Neb., right-hander Dylan Hurt came back on Saturday to shackle Eureka, Mo., on four hits as the Everett Black Sox Junior American Legion team of Bryant prevailed 10-1 in five innings.
The win wrapped up the Sox’ pool play in the annual 17-and-under Battle of Omaha. They were set to advance to bracket play on Sunday.
In five innings, Hurt allowed just one unearned run and struck out four without a walk.
Meanwhile, the Sox hammered out 12 hits including two each by Garett Misenheimer, Cameron Coleman and Jake East. In addition, Jordan Gentry smacked a solo homer.
East drove in three runs. Hurt helped his own cause with two RBIs. Connor Tatum also drove in a pair.
The game was tight for three innings with Bryant holding a 3-1 lead. But a five-run fourth put the Sox in position to earn the run-rule win.
A two-run first put the Black Sox ahead initially. Logan Allen walked and with one out, Misenheimer yanked a single into left. With Alex Shurtleff on to run for Misenheimer, the Bryant catcher, Hurt grounded into a force at second and got the RBI as Allen scored.
The inning continued with Hunter Oglesby belting a double, which knocked in Daniel Darbonne, the courtesy runner for Hurt.
Eureka managed its runs in the bottom of the inning on a double, an error and a single. Everett got it back in the top of the second when Coleman blasted a triple to center and scored on a grounder to second by East.
Gentry led off the top of the fourth, slugging the second pitch for his first homer of the season, clearing the fence in left. Aaron Orender doubled, took third on an error and scored on East’s single. After East swiped second and Allen walked. The duo worked a double steal to set the stage for Tatum’s two-run single up the middle. And when Eureka threw the ball around, Tatum raced around the bases to score, making it 8-1.
Hurt worked around a pair of lead-off singles in the bottom of the fourth. With one out, the duo tried to duplicate Bryant’s double steal only to have Gentry throw out the lead runner at second.
Bryant’s fifth-inning uprising started with two out. Coleman singled ot center, swiped second and scored on East’s second hit. On the tardy throw to the plate, East hustled into second. Allen beat out an infield hit and, with runners at the corners, Allen got into a rundown between first and second, staying in it long enough for East to scored the 10th run.
Hurt eased through a 1-2-3 home fifth, ending the game with a strikeout.
The win improved the Sox to 11-4 on the season.
