Junior Sox make quick work of Mountain Home at State
EDITOR’S NOTE: Because the look back at each day in Bryant athletic history has been so favorably received during the time when there was no sports during the COVID-19 shutdown, BryantDaily.com will continueposting 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).
CONWAY — Things couldn’t have gone much better for the Bryant Black Sox as they opened the 2019 Junior American Legion State Tournament at UCA’s Bear Stadium on Friday morning.
They won in a run-rule, 10-0, in five innings over Mountain Home McLeod, the 2 seed from Area 2, and neither Peyton Dillon nor Josh Turner, the Sox’ pitchers, surpassed the 30-pitch mark, which allows them to pitch again without a day’s rest according to the American Legion pitch count limits
The Sox will play again on Saturday at 5 p.m., against the winner of Friday afternoon’s game between Brinkley and the Sheridan Swarm, two teams that defeated them earlier in the season.
The Black Sox team, managed by Ozzie Hurt, includes Ethan Andrews, Tyler Bates, Gavin Burton, Dakota Clay, Noah Davis, Peyton Dillon, Will Hathcote, Andrew Hatman, Aaron Morgan, Colby Morrow, Kyler Pabon, J.T. Parker, Ryan Riggs, Blaine Sears, Lawson Speer, Hayden Thompson, Josh Turner and Logan White.
“That was exactly the way we drew it up,” acknowledged Sox manager Ozzie Hurt. “We got Dillon out before he got to 30 pitches and Josh finished right at 30 so that couldn’t have gone any better.”
He was pleased with the offense as well.
“After the Fort Smith game,” he said, referring to a 2-1 win in the first round of the Area tournament on July 5, “they’ve really turned it around offensively. The pitching’s always been there, throughout the entire season. We’ve had our pitching.
“And, really, early we were hitting,” Hurt added, “We went into a slump when we went to Fayetteville (June 28-30).”
They scored each of their turns at the plate, grabbing a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first. Dillon had pitched around a two-out walk and a single by Andrew Cantway in the top of the first. He struck out Brycen Benedict to leave them stranded.
It was the only inning in which Mountain Home managed to get two runners aboard.
In the home first, Mountain Home starter Carter Graves struggled to find the plate. Eight of his first 10 pitches were off the plate allowing Speer and Riggs to wait out walks. Davis followed with a perfect bunt that wasn’t even fielded until after he’d crossed first.
Parker drew another walk to force in the first run. Hathcote hit a grounder up the middle and was robbed of a hit by shortstop Rhett Carter. He lunged to tag second before Parker got there for the first out. But White, running for Riggs, scored to make it 2-0.
Davis came home on a wild pitch.
With two down, Morgan drove a single to center. Hathcote tried to score from second but a perfect throw from centerfielder Michael Kreager nabbed him to end the inning.
Dillon set down Mountain Home in order in the top of the second, finishing his stint on the mound with 26 pitches. The Sox added two runs to make it 5-0 in the bottom of the inning. Clay walked and Sears singled. Speer bounced into a force at second then stole a base. He followed Clay home when Riggs hit a shot at short that Carter couldn’t handle. It ricocheted off his glove and into left-center.
The first batter to face Turner, Payton Evans, was robbed of a hit by Parker, ranging wide to his left. But his throw just pulled Hathcote off the bag for an error. On the very next pitch, however, Keegan Rickmon hit a grounder to Davis at short, who caught it near the bag, touched second and fired to first for a doubleplay. Clay made a sparkling play of a slow chopper to third to retire Graves.
Bryant’s third was a marked by confusion for just about everyone, including the umpires. Consecutive singles by Hathcote, Morrow, Morgan and Clay produced a run. Sears walked to make it 7-0.
Speer came up and laced a sinking liner to left. It appeared the Cantway made a diving stab but, though it was not clearly called, apparently it was ruled he trapped the ball. Morgan had tagged and scored. Clay started for third but, in the confusion, back-tracked to second as Sears, nearly to second, retraced his steps back to first, which was uncovered. Speer peeled off and headed to the dugout.
So, Mountain Home appealed to third and, after an initial call of safe, Clay was declared out on a force. An appeal to second appeared to be denied but, in the end, was ruled a force on the man at first (Sears).
Two outs.
Yet, Clay remained at second and Sears remained at first. Both should’ve been out and Speer should’ve been at first but, since he went back to the dugout, he should’ve been out as well.
It should’ve been a triple play.
In the confusion, few realized initially that the fly had not been caught so, it looked like there should’ve been only one out.
Play continued and Riggs yanked a hit into right that appeared to plate Clay. But, because of the confusion on the previous play, that run wasn’t counted on the scoreboard.
In fact, the situation wasn’t completely cleared up until after the game.
The Sox should’ve had a 9-0 lead, but it was 8-0 on the scoreboard, which, if everything had been done correctly would’ve been the actual score.
But Bryant made it a mute-point. Turner pitched around a two-out single by Benedict in the top of the fourth. In the home half, Parker walked and was forced at second on Hathcote’s grounder to third. Morrow belted the first pitch he saw into the right-field corner for an RBI double.
Down 9-0, Mountain Home finally made a pitching change. Wyatt Goodman relieved and Gavin Burton, in to run for Morrow, stole third. When the throw from Rickman, the catcher, got through into the outfield, Burton scored to make it 10-0.
So, when Turner eased through the top of the fifth with a pair of strikeouts and a soft liner to Davis at short, the game concluded.
Turner was credited with the win for working three of the five innings.
Bryant is now 25-7 on the season.
