In the bottom of the third inning, Fort Smith Northside Grizzlies’ leftfielder Darius Wise backed up to the point where he was just a few feet short of the fence.
It was after Austin Ledbetter had pinned him to the wall to catch a long fly then Conner Martin bounced one off the fence behind Wise and, moments later, Turner Seelinger blasted one over Wise’s head and the fend for a two-run homer.
That blast gave the Bryant Hornets a 4-0 lead that they continued to add onto as they remained undefeated in the 6A-Central Conference with a 12-2 victory in six innings at Bryant High School Field.
Now 17-1 overall, the Hornets are 8-0 in league play. They’ve extended their winning streak to 10 games going into a league battle with Little Rock Catholic on Tuesday at Lamar Porter Field.
Garret Wilson picked up the win on the mound and helped his cause with three hits and three runs batted in. Seelinger, Ryan Riggs and Blaine Sears each had two knocks as Bryant hammered out 11 hits to take advantage of seven walks and a pair of errors.
Wilson went five innings, allowing two runs on six hits without a walk. He fanned eight. Aiden Adams pitched a 1-2-3 top of the sixth, striking out two.
A scratch infield hit by Jacob Null in the first and a single to center by Jayden Dilworth in the third was all Wilson gave up while the Hornets built that 4-0 lead.
Bryant scored two in the bottom of the second. Seelinger burned the centerfielder with a drive to the base of the wall for a one-out double. Wilson singled off the third baseman’s glove. The all ricocheted toward center field and Northside’s shortstop Jett Frazier had to reverse his momentum to go get it while Seelinger raced home.
Courtesy runner Logan White stole second and, after Sears drew a walk, Lawson Speer came through with an RBI single to make it 2-0.
In the third, Martin’s double was followed by Seelinger’s two-out blast.
But Northside scrapped for two runs in the top of the fifth to cut the lead in half. Null led off with a bunt single and, on a hit-and-run, Frazier slapped a single to right. Eli Calderera hit a soft chopper toward third — a swinging bunt — that he beat out for an RBI single.
After Frazier stole second, he and Calderera worked a double steal to get the second run.
Wilson retired the next two to keep it 4-2 and, in the sixth, pitched around an infield hit by Will Rollans. He struck out two and got the final out on a fly to Adams in left.
Meanwhile, the Hornets tacked on with the help of some misplays by the Grizzlies. With one out in the bottom of the fourth, Riggs lined a single to center. Jordan Knox came in as a courtesy runner for the Hornets’ catcher. McCade Moody, on in relief of starter Steffan Fak, tried to pick off Knox. But his throw wound up down the right-field line allowing Knox to race to third.
When Noah Davis followed with a short grounder to Dilworth at second, despite the infield being in, Knox beat his throw to the plate to make it 5-2.
Ledbetter was robbed of a hit on a diving stop to his left by Calderera at third. He got up to throw to first, but it was high, forcing first sacker Jayden Darnell to leap up to catch it. He tried to get a tag back down on Ledbetter, but it came too late.
Moody struggled to find the strike zone after that. Walks to Martin and J.T. Parker forced in a run.
After Mason Scrivner took the bump for the Griz, Seelinger’s long fly to center allowed Ledbetter to tag and score, making it 7-2.
In the fifth, Sears singled, stole second, took third on a wild pitch and scored on a sacrifice fly by Davis.
After Adams mowed down Northside in the top of the sixth, Frazier came in to pitch. He couldn’t find the zone as he walked Martin, Parker and Seelinger in succession. Null relieved but was greeted by Wilson’s two-run single to left. With Wilson taking second on the throw from the outfield, the table was set for Sears’ two-run single to right, making it a run-rule win for the Hornets.
