The opening ceremonies for the 2016 MidSouth Regional Tournament. (Photo courtesy of Paul Dotson)
Sox edge Kansas champion, 3-2, in Regional debut
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).
Photos courtesy of Paul Dotson
LITTLE ROCK — The Bryant Black Sox were in position to score in eight of the nine innings against the Ottawa Arrows, Senior American Legion champions from Kansas at Gary Hogan Field on Wednesday night as the 2016 MidSouth Regional got underway. And though they struggled to come up with hits in the clutch most of the night, Jake East and Austin Kelly were able to break through with two-out RBI singles in the third and sixth innings, respectfully, to give the Sox a 3-0 lead.
Third baseman Garrett Misenheimer sets to fire to first. (Photo courtesy of Paul Dotson)
Right-handers Alex Shurtleff and Boston Heil made those runs stand up with Shurtleff taking a one-hit shutout into the seventh. That’s when Ottawa broke through with its own two-out RBI hit by pinch-hitter Owen Lamar, to trim the lead to 3-2.
With runners at first and second and one out, however, Shurtleff came up clutch as well, escaping further damage. Over seven frames, he struck out 11 without a walk, hit a batter and allowed the two runs on five hits.
Heil relieved in the eighth and retired all six batters he faced to close out the 3-2 win, fanning three and picking up some defensive help from first baseman Aaron Orender who made a nice scoop on a throw that skipped in from Garrett Misenheimer who had made a nice play on a grounder to third.
Boston Heil
The victory propels the Sox into the winners bracket semifinals against the Ada Braves, champions of Oklahoma, and an 8-2 winner over League City, Texas in Wednesday.
In other results, Sedalia, Mo., blanked Reserve, La., 3-0, and Pontatoc, Miss., blitzed Arkansas champion, Texarkana, 11-0.
Thursday’s schedule begins with a pair of elimination games as Texarkana takes on Reserve at 9:30 a.m., then Ottawa plays League City at 12:30 p.m. In the winners bracket, Pontatoc and Sedalia battle at 3:30, followed by Bryant-Ada at 6:30.
Bryant prevailed despite stranding a whopping 17 runners, pounding out 10 hits to take advantage of 11 walks and a hit batsman.
“We survived it,” Black Sox manager Darren Hurt acknowledged. “Those early innings, we’ve just got to do a better job. We’ve got to get them in. We left way too many guys out there.
“Austin Kelly’s at-bat was huge,” he noted. “At the time, it looked like we still had a chance to kind of pull away but, looking back now, I’m glad he got that hit.”
Kelly’s two-run single in the sixth came after Aaron Orender swatted his third hit of the game but was thrown out trying to steal. Joey Cates waited out the second of his four walks in the contest then Logan Allen yanked a single into left. Dylan Hurt hit a grounder to second that resulted in a force at that bag but Hurt hustled down the line and reached first to avoid the inning-ending doubleplay. A walk to Garrett Misenheimer loaded the bases and, on a 2-1 pitch from Arrows’ starter Clayton Evans, Kelly drilled his single up the middle.
Alex Shurtleff catches a pop up. (Photo courtesy of Paul Dotson)
Bryant’s first run came in the third. Hurt walked, took second on a wild pitch and third on a single by Misenheimer. Kelly drew a free pass to load the bases but was doubled off first when Jordan Gentry was robbed of a hit when his liner was hauled down by Connor Stepp who made a leaping catch. That brought up East who slapped an RBI single to right.
Allen and East each had two hits in the game.
“The pitching was awesome,” Hurt related. “Alex was really, really good tonight.”
Shurtleff allowed a two-out single to Trenton Ferguson in the bottom of the first then only one other base-runner through six innings. He set down 11 in a row before striking Keegan Finch with a 2-2 delivery. He came back to fan the next two then retire the side in order in the sixth.
Ferguson would crack a lead-off single on an 0-2 pitch to start the seventh. Another 0-2 pitch to Dayne Jung resulted in a swinging bunt that went for an infield hit.
Shurtleff responded with his 11th strikeout but, moments later, Finch singled to left to load the bases. Lamar came on as a pinch-hitter and the count went to 2-2 before he slapped a grounder through the right side off an unbalanced swing for the two-run single that cut the lead to a run.
First baseman Aaron Orender takes a pickoff throw as an Ottawa, Kansas base-runner dives back in. (Photo courtesy of Paul Dotson)
But Shurtleff induced a grounder to East at short that resulted in a force at second then got Alex Stepp to pop to second baseman Seth Tucker ending the inning with the Sox clinging to the lead.
Heil brought his submarine delivery to the mound in the eighth and quickly fell behind Connor Stepp only to come back to strike him out. The next two batters grounded out.
In the ninth, Dayne Jung grounded out to Misenheimer then Heil fanned Tate Jung and Finch to end the game.
“Boston, you know, last year at the end of the summer, I had a little confidence in him,” Darren Hurt said. “But, right now, I wouldn’t go to anybody else in that situation. I mean, he takes that ball and he goes out there and competes. He got down 3-1 to the first batter but just comes back and gets him. He finds ways to get them out.”
The Sox stranded two in each of the first three innings then left the bags full in the fourth. They left on two more in the two-run sixth, stranded a pair in the seventh, two more in the eighth and a couple in the ninth, as well.
Dylan Hurt slides home. (Photo courtesy of Paul Dotson)
