SOUTHAVEN, Miss. — Trailing 5-2 going into the top of the sixth inning, the Bryant Black Sox Junior American Legion team, playing in the 16U division of the Mid-Summer Showdown, nicknamed The Hagan, put together a rally.
J.T. Parker led off with single to left. He took second as he beat a throw there on Colby Morrow’s grounder to the right side. After Gavin Burton grounded into a force at third, Luke Dreher walked to load the bases, representing the potential tying run. Hayden Thompson delivered a run with a sacrifice fly to center but that’s where the uprising ended as a groundout sent it to the bottom of the sixth.
In the top of the seventh, Lawson Speer worked a one-out walk to bring up the potential tying run again, but the Memphis Tigers 16U got the final two outs to hold on for the 5-3 win.
It was the Sox’ opener in pool play. On Saturday, they’re scheduled to play Easley Baseball Club 16U at 11:15 a.m., then again at 4:15 p.m. against the Arkansas Chaos of Paragould.
Bryant led early on Friday, scoring a run in each of the first two innings. In the first, Speer singled, stole second, took third on a wild pitch then scored on another pitch in the dirt. In the second, Gavin Burton walked, took second on yet another wild pitch then scored on Luke Dreher’s double.
But the Tigers tied it in the bottom of the second using two singles to go with a pair of Bryant errors.
A single, a groundout and an error allowed Memphis to take the lead in the bottom of the third.
It stayed 3-2 until the bottom of the fifth when a pair of singles and a walk set the table. An error allowed two runs, making it 5-2 going into Bryant’s sixth.
Drew Hatman was the tough-luck pitcher for the Sox, going six innings and allowing only one earned run (of the five runs) along with eight hits and two walks. He fanned four.
