Junior Sox’ improvement evident in twinbill split against PBNB
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).
By Rob Patrick
PINE BLUFF — In their previous two meetings with Pine Bluff National Bank this season, the Bryant Black Sox Junior American Legion team was outscored by a combined 28-3 and outhit 27-15.
They faced each other in a doubleheader again at Taylor Field on Thursday, June 25, and even though the Bankers snapped Bryant’s three-game winning streak, they hardly derailed the Sox’ drive toward post-season play. Pine Bluff had to muster four runs in the final two innings of the opener to salvage a 5-4 win in the opener then the Sox actually handed the Bankers a loss in the five-inning second game, 2-0.
A far cry from the 12-3 and 16-0 losses earlier in the season.
The results have the Sox sporting a 13-8 overall record going into their final two regular-season playing dates. They were set to travel to North Little Rock on Sunday for a pair of games before closing out the campaign at home on Monday against Benton. District Tournament play is set to begin later next week. Originally slated for Sheridan, there was a chance the District planned there might be split up with some teams playing there and others playing in Benton.[more]
At Pine Bluff, starters Matt Neal, in the first game, and Dylan Pritchett, in the second, shackled Pine Bluff. Neal had the Bankers shut out on two hits through five innings then Pritchett handcuffed them on two hits in the nightcap. As it turned out, all four of the runs Pine Bluff managed against Neal were unearned including the three scored in the bottom of the sixth to tie the game 4-4. Austin Johnson relieved Neal with the potential go-ahead run at first and got the final out of the sixth. But, in the seventh, Michael Smith’s bases-loaded single with one out won it for Pine Bluff.
Pritchett allowed only three baserunners in the five innings of the second game. A bloop single with one out in the second was erased when catcher Landon Pickett, who worked through the sweltering heat for all 12 innings of the twinbill, threw out the baserunner trying to steal. A lead-off single in the third was followed by two strikeouts and a pop up to first baseman Blake Davidson. And a one-out walk in the fourth came to naught. Along the way, Evan Jobe, in right, and Lucas Castleberry, at short, made nice defensive plays behind the right-hander.
The second game was scoreless, in fact, as Pine Bluff Tyler Robinson matched Pritchett’s zeroes for four innings. In the top of the fifth, however, Davidson drew a lead-off walk and Chris Joiner got down a nice sacrifice bunt that Robinson fielded but juggled. Rushing his throw to first, he sailed it out of the reach of first baseman Zach Barr. Davidson circled the bases as Barr tracked down the ball. And when Barr’s late throw to the plate got past Smith, the catcher, and rolled into the Pine Bluff dugout, Joiner scored as well.
Pritchett worked a 1-2-3 home fifth, thanks in part to Castleberry’s play on a liner off Barr’s bat, to nail down the win.
In the opener, the Sox took a 4-0 lead in the third when Barr, the Pine Bluff starter, ran into some control trouble. He walked Tyler Brown and Davidson to open the inning then Joiner slashed a single past first base to load the bases for Castleberry. His hard grounder got through second baseman Antoine Jackson and two runs scored.
Pritchett singled and Pickett drew a walk to force in a run. After a pitching change, Caleb Milam bounced into a force at home but Jobe drew another RBI walk.
Deonte Howard, who came on in relief in the inning, went the rest of the way shutting out the Sox on two hits.
Meanwhile, Neal worked his way out of jams in the first, third and fourth. In the first, Hunter Colson reached on an error and, on a hit-and-run, Jackson singled to left. But Milam charged the ball well and fired to third to nail Colson for the first out. Tanner Moore lined out to Pritchett at short then Ryan Dardenne lifted a pop down the right-field line that looked like it might fall for an RBI hit but Brown raced over from his second base spot to make a basket catch, ending the inning.
In the third, Neal issued a lead-off walk to Spencer Staggs. He retired the next two and appeared to be out of the inning when Jackson tapped one to Castleberry at third. Castleberry charged the ball and came up with it but juggled it as Jackson reached base. But Staggs rounded second too far and Castleberry fired to Brown who proceeded to start a rundown that eventually retired Staggs ending that inning.
Another error in the fourth and a two out walk had Neal in a little trouble again but he struck out Jared James to end that threat.
In the fifth, Neal hit Staggs and, an out later, Colson grounded to third. Castleberry threw to second for the force but Brown’s relay was in the dirt and skipped past Davidson. Colson was able to take second on the play which allowed him to score on Jackson’s single up the middle, a pitch later. Jackson swiped second to get into scoring position but Neal fanned Moore to keep it 4-1.
Dardenne lined to Castleberry to start the sixth but a walk to Ryan Bowlin and a single by Smith followed. Neal got James to hit a bouncer to short, a possible doubleplay ball but Pritchett couldn’t field the short hop cleanly and all hands were safe, loading the bases. Staggs followed with a fly to left that would’ve been the third out but served as a sacrifice fly to make it 4-2.
And when the throw from Milam in left missed the cutoff man on the play, Smith and James were able to move up to second and third which proved crucial. When Howard drilled a single to left, both were able to score, tying the game.
Johnson relieved and got Colson to fly to center to end the inning but the Sox were unable to take advantage of a one-out single to center by Pritchett in the top of the seventh. In the home half, Jackson walked and Moore sacrificed him to second. He had to hold on Dardenne’s long fly to right-center because Jobe and Joiner converged on the ball. Neither, however, to get to it in time and it dropped in for a single to put runners at first and third.
Sox coaches Brad Chism and Dustin Tinker decided to issue an intentional walk to Bowlin to set up a force at every base but Smith spoiled the strategy with a hit down the right-field line to win it.
PINE BLUFF NATIONAL BANK 5-0, BRYANT 4-2
Junior American Legion
Game one
Black Sox ab r h bi PBNB ab r h bi
Joiner, cf 4 1 2 0 Colson, ss 4 1 0 0
Castleberry, 3b 4 0 1 1 Jackson, 2b 3 1 2 1
Pritchett, ss 4 1 2 0 Moore, 1b 3 0 0 0
Pickett, c 3 0 0 1 Dardenne, c 4 0 1 0
Milam, lf 4 0 0 0 Bowlin, 3b 2 1 0 0
Jobe, rf 2 0 0 1 Barr, p-rf 1 0 0 0
Johnson, dh-p 3 0 0 0 Smith, pr-rf 2 1 2 1
Brown, 2b 2 1 0 0 James, cf 3 1 0 0
Davidson, 1b 1 1 0 0 Staggs, rf-lf 0 0 0 1
Neal, p 0 0 0 0 Howard, lf-p 3 0 1 2
Totals 27 4 5 3 Totals 25 5 6 5
BRYANT 004 000 0 — 4
PBNB 000 013 1 — 5
One out when winning run scored.
E—Pritchett 2, Jackson, Castleberry, Brown. LOB—Bryant 7, Pine Bluff 9. 2B—Castleberry. SB—Castleberry, Jackson 2. S—Moore. SF—Staggs.
Pitching ip r er h bb so
Bryant
Neal 5.2 4 0 4 3 3
Johnson (L) 0.2 1 1 2 2 0
Pine Bluff
Barr 2 4 4 3 3 2
Howard (W) 5 0 0 2 2 3
Barr faced six batters in the third.
HBP—Staggs (by Neal).
Game two
Black Sox ab r h bi PBNB ab r h bi
Joiner, cf 2 0 0 0 Colson, ss-p 2 0 0 0
Castleberry, ss 3 0 1 0 Jackson, 2b-ss 2 0 0 0
Pritchett, p 2 0 0 0 Bowlin, 3b 1 0 0 0
Pickett, c 3 0 1 0 Dardenne, rf 2 0 0 0
Milam, lf 3 0 1 0 Smith, c 2 0 1 0
Jobe, rf 1 0 1 0 Stone, lf 2 0 0 0
Nixon, 3b 2 0 1 0 Barr, 1b 2 0 1 0
Brown, 2b 2 0 0 0 Statten, cf 2 0 0 0
Davidson, 1b 1 0 0 0 Robinson, p 1 0 0 0
Howard, 2b 0 0 0 0
Totals 19 2 5 0 Totals 16 0 2 0
BRYANT 000 02 — 2
PBNB 000 00 — 0
E—Jackson, Brown, Robinson, Barr. DP—Pine Bluff 2. LOB—Bryant 6, Pine Bluff 2. 2B—Jobe, Pickett. S—Joiner.
Pitching ip r er h bb so
Bryant
Pritchett (W) 5 0 0 2 1 6
Pine Bluff
Robinson (L) 4.2 2 0 5 3 1
Colson 0.1 0 0 0 0 0
