Black Sox’ ‘wood’ fun is bummer for Benton
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).
BENTON — When the Benton and Bryant AAA American Legion teams were unable to play in the Texarkana, Texas, Wood Bat Tournament due to rain showers June 9-10, the two teams decided to play a wood bat game themselves on Sunday, June 11, at Bill Perry Field in Bernard Holland Park.
Just for fun.
It turned out to be a lot more fun for Bryant’s Black Sox as they blasted their rivals, 15-0 in five innings.
Naturally, it’s hardly ever “just for fun” when teams from Bryant and Benton take to the diamond. And the underlying factor in Sunday’s game was the fact that the Black Sox were still smarting from a 6-4 loss to Benton earlier this season when Bryant let a 4-1 lead slip away in the sixth inning.
So, it was with some relish that the Sox unloaded on Benton Sunday.
And it started right away when Matt White opened the game with a triple. An out later, Michael McClellan doubled to give Anthony Rose all the runs he would need.
Rose pitched into the fifth for the Sox. He allowed just three hits and two walks while fanning five. Tad Beene came on to get the final two outs.
The Sox actually scored three times in the first. After McClellan’s two-bagger, Rose was hit by a pitch and Beau Hamblin singled to load the bases. McClellan scored when Beene’s grounder was misplayed then Rose came in on a bases-loaded walk to Cody Graddy.
In the bottom of the inning, Benton managed two of its three hits. Adam Roberson led off with a single but was gunned down trying to steal by Hamblin. Kevin Ashworth then doubled but he was stranded as Rose retired the next two.
Rose retired 10 of the next 11 hitters before running into trouble in the fourth when Benton loaded the bases. Rose issued his only walks of the game to Clay Goodwin and B.J. Kenter around a two-out single by Nathaniel Doddridge but he ended the inning with a strike out to preserve the shutout.
In the meantime, of course, the Sox’ offense was piling it on. In the third, it produced five runs, adding four more in the fourth.
The five-run third got into gear when Beene beat out an infield hit with two down. Graddy walked and Chris Sory singled to load the bases for Sean Sebourn who cleared the bags with a double to the gap in right-center. White then chased home Sebourn with a single to left, advancing to second on the late throw to the plate. Dustin Morris made it 8-0 with another single to left.
In the fourth, McClellan walked, Rose singled and Hamblin beat out a bunt to load the bases. McClellan was forced out at the plate on a grounder to short by Beene then Rose was forced at the plate on tap to third by Graddy. But Sory kept the inning going with an RBI single setting up Sebourn again who made it six RBIs for the day with another three-run double.
In the top of the fifth, Morris cracked a lead-off single up the middle and McClellan drew a walk. With one down, Hamblin doubled to make it 13-0, Beene singled to make it 14-0 and Graddy singled to complete the rout.
The Sox pounded out 16 hits in the game including three by Hamblin, improving to 7-5 on the season going into Monday’s game at home against Stuttgart.
