Hornets sweep three at Classic
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 continue 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).
JONESBORO — The Bryant Hornets and the Pine Bluff Zebras did the AAAAA-South Conference proud at Champions Classic at Nettleton High School over the weekend. Both teams, gearing up for a conference opening set-to at Pine Bluff on April 3, swept through three games at the event including a win apiece over the previously unbeaten home squad.
The Hornets’ performance was highlighted by the team’s first error-free game of the season, in a 9-3 victory over Clearwater, Mo., Saturday. Bryant defeated Nettleton Friday night 10-3 and highly-regarded Central Arkansas Christian Saturday night, 11-2.
Senior shortstop Matt Brown kept his hitting streak alive through the weekend. By hitting in all three games, Brown had hit safely in all 18 of the Hornets games this season.
The wins gave the Hornets four in a row and eight wins in their last 10 games going into a non-conference game at Westark Junior College on Thursday, March 29, against Fort Smith Southside. Bryant is 12-6 overall going into that game.
The tournament was marred by injury, however. Senior first baseman went down with back pain, junior catcher Cody Graddy injured his shoulder and junior pitcher Kevin Littleton was only able to throw two innings of Saturday night’s game against CAC before coming out.
The status of each of the players was still up in the air at press time, though it’s likely they’ll be rested against Southside in hopes they’ll be available against unbeaten Pine Bluff.
Bryant 10, Nettleton 3
Senior right-hander Chris Sory limited the host Raiders to three hits in a complete-game performance. Two of the hits — a double and a two-run homer — came in the first inning. The only other Nettleton hit was a solo home run by John Findley with two out in the bottom of the fourth.
Sory walked three and struck out six as he improved to 2-2 on the season.
The hitting stars for Bryant were Matt Brown and Brandon Nichols with three hits apiece. Brown slugged a two-run homer in the game. Nichols was on base four times with a walk to go along with his double and two singles.
Luke Brown got Bryant off to a good start with a one-out solo homer in the top of the first. Dustin Morris followed with a double and Matt Brown singled. A wild pitch allowed Morris to score and, after Cody Graddy walked, an errant pickoff throw allowed Matt Brown to score.
Nichols singled Graddy to third and an error allowed him to score. Nichols, who advanced to second on the miscue, took third when Beau Hamblin grounded out then made it 5-0 on a wild pitch.
After Josh Allison’s two-run homer in the bottom of the inning, Sory issued back-to-back walks, but Graddy gunned down the first base runner trying to steal then picked the second off first to end the inning.
Though the Hornets had runners on base in every inning, they were unable to score again until, leading 5-3, they broke through again in the sixth. That’s when Matt Brown, following a walk to Luke Brown, smashed his third home run of the season.
In the seventh, Nichols doubled and scored on a single by Matt Lewis. A.J. Nixon, running for Lewis, swiped second and scored on a single by Matt White. Luke Brown chased White home with a double to center.
Bryant 9, Clearwater, Mo. 3
Senior lefty Brad Chism allowed just three hits and struck out 13 in another rout-going performance on the mound and the Hornets scored in all but one inning as Luke Brown, before suffering his injury, and Matt Brown had two hits each.
Chism, 3-2, took a one-hitter into the seventh inning. He issued a walk to start the game and, after a stolen base, an RBI single before retiring the next three — two on strikeouts — to get out of the inning. He then retired 17 of the next 18 batters he faced. He surrendered a walk to lead off the fourth but the base runner was retired trying to get to second on a pop into right by the next hitter who reached first on the fielder’s choice but was then picked off.
A solo homer to lead off the top of the seventh ended the streak but then Chism came up with the rare feat of striking out four batters in an inning. The second strikeout victim was able to reach base on a third-strike wild pitch. After the third strikeout, the base runner scored on a single to left before Chism ended the game with the fourth K of the inning and 13th of the game.
The Hornets took the lead initially in the first inning. Matt White reached on an error to start the inning, advanced to second on a passed ball, to third on a single by Luke Brown and scored on another passed ball.
Luke Brown, who had swiped second, took third on the passed ball that allowed White to score then came home on a sacrifice fly by Matt Brown to make it 2-1.
In the third, they took control. With two down, Luke Brown singled and took second on a wild pitch. Dustin Morris walked then Matt Brown, extending his hitting streak to 17 games, singled to left to make it 3-1. Nichols then chased home two with a drive to the gap in left-center for a triple.
In the fourth, Hamblin doubled, advanced on a balk and scored on Zach Martin’s grounder to short to make it 6-1.
Matt Brown singled and swiped second to start the fifth. Another balk allowed him to reach third and he scored on a passed ball.
The Hornets put the finishing touches on the win in the bottom of the sixth. Martin doubled, White walked and Derrick Chambers drove in a run with a single to right. White came home on a passed ball.
Bryant 11, CAC 2
Morris and Nichols each had three hits and Matt White socked a home run as the Hornets used a pair of big innings to subdue the Mustangs despite the fact that Luke Brown was unable to play, Graddy left with his injury after starting the game in right field instead of catcher, and Littleton was unable to continue after two innings.
Scott Yant relieved in the third and pitched five shutout innings, scattering four hits while fanning nine and walking just one to pick up the win. He improved to 3-1 on the season.
CAC scored its only two runs in the second on a walk and three hits before Littleton fanned the last two in the inning to strand runners at second and third.
The Hornets had pushed a run across in the home first when Nichols singled, stole second, advanced to third on a base hit by Morris and, after Matt Brown walked to load the bases, came home on a grounder to short by Hamblin.
After Yant worked around a lead-off double in the top of the third, Bryant took the lead with a six-run uprising in the home half of the frame.
A walk to Nichols instigated the rally. Singles by Morris and Matt Brown brought him around. An errant pickoff throw allowed Morris to score and Brown came home when Hamblin’s bouncer to first was botched.
Graddy was hit by a pitch then Chambers beat out an infield hit to load the bases. CAC turned a 5-2-3 doubleplay but Martin walked to load the bases. Graddy came home on a short passed ball, getting injured on a head-first slide across the plate then White walked to load them up again for Nichols who delivered a two-run single to left-center to make it 7-2.
It stayed that way until the fifth. After Yant struck out the side following a lead-off single in the top of the fifth, the Hornets put four more runs on the board. Walks to Chambers and Martin set the table for White who blasted a long homer to center. Nichols followed with his third hit, Morris reached on an error, Hamblin was hit by a pitch and Clay Jones walked to force in the 11th run.
Yant fanned two to get around a walk and an error in the sixth then struck out two more in the seventh around a one-out single and a fielder’s choice to wrap it up.
