By Rob Patrick
PINE BLUFF — The Bryant Black Sox Junior American Legion team was down 5-0 before it could record an out against the Pine Bluff National Bank Junior team at Taylor Field on Monday night.
The Bankers started strong and finished strong, pounding out 12 hits including five for extra bases on the way to an 11-3 win.
The Sox battled back to within 6-3 but lost a pair of base runners along the way before Pine Bluff made it a run-rule win with five runs in the bottom of the sixth.
Bryant, 5-3, was set to return to action at home on Thursday, June 4, against Conway Christian.[more]
After the Sox were unable to take advantage of a lead-off single by Chris Joiner and a one-out walk to Dylan Pritchett in the top of the first, Pine Bluff opened the bottom of the inning with back-to-back doubles from Hunter Colson and Mitchell Smith.
Jared James walked and Ryan Dardenne was hit by a pitch to load the bases for Ryan Bowlin. On a 1-1 delivery, Bowlin blasted a grand slam to make it 5-0.
After that, Bryant right-hander Landon Pickett found his breaking ball and only allowed one run over the next three innings. He worked around a pair of hits to start the second, finishing the frame with a pair of strikeouts. In the third, a walk, an error, a sacrifice and a lined single to center by Zach Barr added a run. Pickett struck out two more in the fourth to work around a two-out single by Smith.
Bryant got on the board against Pine Bluff starter Camron Stone in the third. Joiner singled and, with two down, scored on a triple by Brady Butler. Pickett singled in a second run to make it 5-2.
After Pine Bluff added its run in the third, the Sox rallied in the fifth. With one out, Lucas Castleberry ripped a double off the base of the left-field fence. Pritchett drew a walk and Stone was pulled in favor of Ryan Dardenne. Butler followed with another deep drive to center. At first, Castleberry took his lead from second then, when it looked like James, the Pine Bluff center fielder, might get to the ball, he started to tag up.
The ball got down and Castleberry, despite tagging up, tried to round third and score only to have Pine Bluff work the relay to perfection to nab him at the plate.
Butler wound up with a single though Pritchett made it to third. Pickett's second RBI single brought home Pritchett to make it 6-3.
That also brought up the potential tying run but Dardenne ended the rally there with a strikeout.
In the top of the sixth, Evan Jobe drew a lead-off walk to give the Sox a chance. An out later, Tyler Gattin laced a single to left center but, the Sox' aggressiveness on the basepaths burned them again as the Bankers' Deonta Howard in left, charged Pickett's hit, scooped the ball up and threw to third in time to retire Jobe for the second out of the frame. Dardenne induced a fly to center from Joiner to retire the side.
Right-hander Austin Johnson had relieved for the Sox in the fifth and needed just 10 pitches to get through the inning, retiring the side in order.
In the sixth, however, Barr singled and, an out later, Antoine Jackson singled and Colson walked to load the bases. A run scored when Smith bounced out to second but that was the last out the Bankers would surrender. Pinch-hitter Spencer Staggs singed in Colson, Dardenne doubled in a run and Bowlin ended it with an RBI triple to deep center.
PINE BLUFF NATIONAL BANK 11, BLACK SOX 3
BRYANT PINE BLUFF
ab r h bi ab r h bi
Joiner, cf 4 1 2 0 Colson, ss 3 2 2 0
Castlebrry, 3b 3 0 1 0 Smith, c 4 1 2 2
Pritchett, lf 1 1 0 0 James, cf 2 1 0 0
Butler, c 3 1 2 1 Staggs, ph 1 1 1 1
Pickett, p-dh 3 0 2 2 Dardenne, dh-p 3 2 1 1
Milam, 1b 2 0 0 0 Bowlin, 3b 3 3 2 5
Jobe, rf 2 0 0 0 Moore, rf 2 0 0 0
Brown, 2b 3 0 0 0 Barr, 1b 3 1 2 1
Gattin, ss 3 0 1 0 Howard, lf 2 0 0 0
Johnson, p 0 0 0 0 Robinson, ph 1 0 0 0
Jackson, 2b 3 1 2 0
Stone, p 0 0 0 0
Totals 24 3 8 3 Totals 27 12 12 10
BRYANT 002 010 — 3
Pine Bluff NB 501 005 — 11
Two out when decisive run scored.
E—Milam, Gattin. DP—Bryant 1. LOB—Bryant 7, Pine Bluff 3. 2B—Colson, Smith, Dardenne, Castleberry. 3B—Bowlin. HR—Bowlin. SB—Smith. S—Moore.
Pitching ip r er h bb so
Bryant
Pickett (L) 4 7 6 7 2 5
Johnson 1.2 5 5 5 1 1
Pine Bluff
Stone (W) 4.1 3 3 5 3 1
Dardenne 1.2 0 0 3 1 1
HBP—Dardenne (by Pickett). WP—Stone. PB—Butler.
