MIAMI, Okla. — For their third game in pool play at the annual Chad Wolff Classic, the Bryant Black Sox Senior American Legion team and the BTL Academy Hornets (Jones) of Shawnee, Kansas, met at Northeast Oklahoma University in Miami on Friday. The Sox scored early and late but BTL forged a 5-4 win with two in the second, one in the third and two more in the fifth.
Bryant had six hits, two each by Noah Davis and Blaine Sears.
Will Hathcote started on the mound for the Sox and surrendered five runs, four earned on four hits. But he walked six and fanned three. Tyler Bates relieved then Coby Greiner threw 2 2/3 innings of shutout ball, walking one and striking out six without giving up a hit.
The loss made Bryant 1-2 in pool play so far at the annual Chad Wolff Classic. The Sox are set to play twice on Saturday. They’ll be in Webb City, Mo., at 1:30 against a Sandlot 17U team out of Tulsa. At 5:15 p.m., they’ll take on Next Level Baseball of Springdale back at NEO in Miami, a 45-minute drive from Webb City.
In Friday’s game, Bryant took a 2-0 lead in the first when Davis and Ryan Riggs led off with singles. They put together a double steal to put both in scoring position for Cade Drennan, who’s bloop single to left plated Davis. Logan Catton came through with a sacrifice fly to bring Riggs in. A pop out and a strikeout ended the threat with a runner at second.
Hathcote surrendered a single and a one-out walk in the bottom of the first but his teammates turned a doubleplay to send it to the second.
The Sox threatened to add to the lead in the second when Sears singled with one out and Greiner sacrificed him to second. Davis walked and so did Riggs to load the bases, but a strikeout left them there as the inning concluded.
BTL took advantage with a pair of runs in the bottom of the second to tie it. A walk, an error and a sacrifice put runners in scoring position. A single drove in the first run. The second came on a grounder to first when the throw home was too late.
Hathcote ended the inning with a strikeout and a groundout.
Peyton Dillon walked with one out in the top of the third, but a pair of strikeouts followed.
In the bottom of the inning a one-out walk, a two-out walk and a single to shallow center put the Hornets ahead, 3-2.
Bryant was retired in order in the top of the fourth then BTL tacked on two. A pair of lead-off walks set the table. A strikeout followed but the runners stole their way to second and third. A looping single to center plated a run.
Bates relieved and issued a walk. Greiner came on and got a strikeout with the bases loaded, but a walk followed to make it a 5-2 game.
Bryant’s sixth-inning rally began with a walk to J.T. Parker. He took second when Brayden Lester grounded out to first. Sears’ single to right brought Parker around and, on the throw to the plate, Sears wound up at second. A relay throw was errant, and he scooted to third for Greiner, who squeezed him home to make it 5-4 with two away.
Davis singled and Riggs walked but Drennan grounded into a force at second to end the uprising.
Greiner struck out the side in the bottom of the sixth but, in the seventh, all the Sox could muster was a two-out walk to Parker.
