Black Sox Juniors win behind McEntire’s one-hit whitewash
EDITOR’S NOTE: In this time of COVID-19, with no sports action, BryantDaily.com will be posting past stories of Bryant athletics either posted on BryantDaily.com (from 2009 to the present) or published in the Bryant Times (from 1998 to 2008).
MEMPHIS — Will McEntire fired a one-hit shoutout, fanning seven and walking two and Coby Greiner and Logan Chambers each had two hits as the Bryant Black Sox Junior American Legion team opened the 16U division of the Keith Hagan Memorial All-American Classic with a 4-0 win over Batters Box Black (DeMarini) of Collierville, Tenn., on Friday.
The Sox scored twice in the third and twice in the sixth to forge the advantage.
McEntire retired the first 11 Batters Box batters before a throwing error allowed the first runner of the game with two down in the bottom of the fourth. Black’s Aaron Wolfe followed with a shot into the left-field corner for a double. The lead runner, Garrett Knott hesitated coming around third but Wolfe was thinking triple. The Sox worked a perfect relay from Jacob Wright in left to shortstop Myers Buck to Christian Harp at third that nailed Wolfe at third before Knott could get to the plate after regaining his momentum.
The Tennessee team managed just two base-runners after that, a two-out walk in the fifth and a lead-off walk in the seventh. The first of those was stranded, the second was erased in a doubleplay before McEntire ended the game with his seventh strikeout.
The Sox threatened to score in the first inning when Wright walked and Greiner legged out a double on a bloop into no-man’s land in shallow left-center. But both were stranded as Batter Box Black starter Dawson Barton escaped.
McEntire needed just five pitches to wade through the Collierville team in the home first.
Wright’s second hit was a triple to lead off the top of the third. He held as Catton reached on an error but, moments later, he was doubled off third when Greiner’s line drive was speared by the third sacker.
But the inning continued with Harp delivering a shot into the left-field corner for a triple that plated Catton. Chambers singled in Harp and it was 2-0.
The Sox’ bats were quiet until the sixth when Ryan Lessenberry smacked a lead-off single to right. With Sawyer Holt in as a courtesy runner for the Bryant catcher, Buck sacrificed him to second. With two down, Catton’s infield hit sent Holt to third. He scored on an errant throw as Catton hustled to second. That set the table for Greiner who raked a single to right to make it 4-0.
Chambers and Lessenberry each singled in the top of the seventh but the Sox were unable to tack on. McEntire, however, had more than enough to work with as he closed it out.
Bryant was set to continue pool play today at 1 p.m., against the St. Louis Gamers at the University of Memphis field.
Special thanks to J’Ann Boyd and Madison McEntire
