Early scoring helps Everett Sox advance past Ashdown at Zone tourney
EDITOR’S NOTE: Because the look back at each day in Bryant athletic history has been so favorably received during the time when there was no sports during the COVID-19 shutdown, BryantDaily.com will continueposting 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).
SHERIDAN — Connor Tatum and Jordan Gentry each had two hits while Hunter Oglesby and Cameron Coleman drove in a pair apiece as the Everett Black Sox of Bryant won their second game at the Zone 4 Junior American Legion District Tournament on Sunday. The 9-3 victory over the Ashdown Mustangs moves them a win away from clinching one of four bids from the 16-team Zone 4 tourney to the Junior State Tournament next weekend in North Little Rock.
The Sox, defending Junior division champions, improved to 25-6 this season. It was their sixth win in a row and 10th in the last 11 games.
Jake East and Tatum combined to scatter nine hits. Only two of Ashdown’s runs were earned.
Everett jumped on the Mustangs starter Trevor Day for four runs in the first inning. Logan Allen walked and Connor Tatum beat out a bunt single. A bunt by Garrett Misenheimer was fielded by Day who threw to Quinn Mitchell at third for a force.
But Dylan Hurt slapped an RBI single to right. On the late throw to the plate, Hurt scooted to second. That set up Oglesby’s two-run single to left, which made it 3-0.
Oglesby, too, sailed into second on a late throw to the plate and scored moments later on Gentry’s first hit, a lined single to center.
Ashdown threatened to answer in the bottom of the inning. Bryson Haskins singled and, with one out, Alex Day drew a walk. But East picked off Haskins. A walk to Cole Boyd but runners at first and second with two down. The count to Clark Clevenger went to 3-2 and the Mustangs’ batter fouled off two pitches. Before the next one, however, East whirled and caught Alex Day wandering off second. The second pick-off of the inning ended it.
East was hit by a pitch to start the top of the second. Tatum chased him home with a one-out shot to the base of the fence in right for a triple to make it 5-0.
After the Mustangs were retired in order in the bottom of the second, Oglesby reached on an error to start the third. Gentry sacrificed him to second and Aaron Orender beat out an infield hit to put runners on the corners. Cameron Coleman’s tap up the first baseline allowed Oglesby to score the Sox’ sixth run.
A walk to Trevor Day opened the bottom of the third. East fanned Andy Daniels but Haskins beat out an infield hit to bring up Bryar Reed. On a 1-0 pitch, Reed laced a sinking liner to right. Coleman came in to try to make a diving catch at ground level but it was ruled a trap. Day scored but Haskins didn’t see the umpire’s call and headed back to first as Reed, who didn’t see it either, peeled off the base-line into foul territory, thinking he was headed back to the dugout.
Coleman threw in to Orender, his cutoff man, as Haskins realized what the call was. He tried to scramble back to second but Orender’s throw to Tatum, covering second, got the force. With Reed coming to the realization that he had to get to first, Tatum returned the throw but it was enough off line that Reed was able to just get back.
Unfazed, East got Alex Day to fly to Oglesby in left to keep it 6-1.
Neither team scored in the fourth. In the fifth, Reed relieved for Ashdown and Oglesby’s grounder to short was booted. He stole second, took third on a wild pitch and scored on Orender’s sacrifice fly to center.
Orender’s sac fly was the first of three in as many innings for the Sox as they further extended their lead after Ashdown took advantage of a Bryant error to score a couple of runs in the home half of the fifth. Alex Day had a two-out RBI single and it was 7-3.
In the sixth, East walked, Allen sacrificed, Tatum walked and, after a wild pitch, Misenheimer delivered the sacrifice fly to right. In the seventh, Gentry blooped a single to right, took second on a wild pitch, third on another and scored on Coleman’s sacrifice to center.
Tatum relieved East in the sixth and worked around a pair of two-out singles. In the seventh, Haskins was hit by a pitch, stole second and went to third on an errant throw. With one out, Alex Day plated the fourth Ashdown run with his second single.
But he was forced at second on a grounder to Weston Jones at third, hit by Boyd. And when Boyd inexplicably tried to steal as Clevenger came to the plate, he left too soon so Tatum stepped off the rubber and threw to Gentry for the tag that concluded the contest.
BRYANT EVERETT 9, ASHDOWN 4
Black Sox ab r h bi Mustangs ab r h bi
Allen, cf 2 0 0 0 Haskins, ss 3 2 2 0
Tatum, ss-p 3 1 2 1 Reed, 2b-p 4 0 1 1
Misenheimer, 3b-c 3 1 1 1 A.Day, c 3 0 2 2
Hurt, c 3 0 1 1 Boyd, lf 3 0 0 0
Kelly, cr 0 1 0 0 Clevenger, cf 3 0 1 0
Jones, 3b 0 0 0 0 Bearden, rf 3 0 0 0
Oglesby, lf 4 3 1 2 Mitchell, 3b 3 0 1 0
Gentry, 2b 3 1 2 1 T.Day, p-2b 2 1 2 0
Orender, 1b 3 0 1 1 Blagg, cr 0 1 0 0
Coleman, rf 3 0 0 2 Daniels, 1b 3 0 0 0
East, p-ss 2 2 0 0
Totals 26 9 8 9 Totals 27 4 9 3
Bryant 411 011 1 — 9
Ashdown 001 020 1 — 4
E—Mitchell, Haskins, Jones, Misenheimer. LOB—Bryant 6, Ashdown 7. 3B—Tatum. SB—Gentry, Orender, Blagg, Oglesby, T.Day, Tatum, Jones, Haskins. S—Gentry, Allen. SF—Orender, Misenheimer, Coleman.
Pitching ip r er h bb so
Bryant
East (W) 5 3 1 6 2 1
Tatum 2 1 1 3 0 0
Ashdown
T.Day (L) 4 6 6 7 0 1
Reed 3 3 2 1 3 2
HBP—Haskins (by Tatum). WP—T.Day, Reed 3.
