DIAMOND ‘DOGS TOP SABINE | Whataburger OBC continues, Kilgore back in action tonight

Kilgore defeated Sabine, 10-5, on day two of the Whataburger Oil Belt Classic Friday morning at Driller Park, and game one ended in a 6-all tie between Harmony and Hardin Jefferson – after Harmony staged a late comeback from a 6-0 deficit.

Those were the early games on Friday, some fireworks after a cold and rainy day one of the 59^th annual event, one of the oldest consecutive high school baseball tournaments in the state.

It runs the rest of the day Friday, concludes with Kilgore facing Tyler Legacy’s junior varsity Friday evening (a scheduled 7:25 p.m. start – don’t forget tournaments can sometimes run ahead or behind, even with an hour-and-45-minute time limit) and then has one more day, the big final day on Saturday.

On Saturday, teams will be matched up according to how they did in the pool-play games on Thursday and Friday. So game one will begin at 9 a.m., game two at 11:15 a.m., game three at 1:30, and the championship game at 3:45. The title game is easy: it’s the two teams with the two best records in the pool games. The 1:30 game matches up the teams with the second-best records. The 11:15 game, the teams with the third-best records, and the early game – well, that’s the teams with the pool-play records that weren’t as good.

Right this minute – before Friday’s Kilgore-Legacy game – it appears Kilgore will play at 1:30 on Saturday, although that is far from settled.

Sabine jumped out to a 2-1 lead on the Diamond ‘Dogs on Friday morning. The Cardinals, who were snookered late by Legacy’s JV on Thursday by a 2-1 score after a brilliant performance on the mound by Hudson Pepper, got off to a good start against the Bulldogs.

Jayden McPherson singled to center field, then advanced to second on a bunt grounder by Cole Loveless, fielded by Kilgore pitcher Tanner Beets and then recorded out by first baseman Colt Bullard.

Cade Silvertooth followed with a single, and McPherson came on around to score, giving the Cardinals a 1-0 lead.

They’d double it before long. On the next at-bat, by Colt Sparks, Silvertooth went to second, then to third on a wild pitch. Sparks took a strike two and then put the ball in play, grounding into a fielder’s choice and Silvertooth got caught in a rundown between third and home. Sparks reached safely, as Silvertooth was getting the attention from Kilgore third baseman Tate Truman and catcher Joe Hendrickson.

Silvertooth was finally tagged for the second out of the inning, leaving Sparks the lone base-runner, but in scoring position at second.

And Pepper made Kilgore pay, a line-drive single to left field that put runners at the corners: Sparks at third and Pepper at first.

The next batter, starting pitcher Braylen Hawkins, put the ball in play, and reached on an error that also allowed Sparks to come around and score. Pepper went to second. That allowed Sabine to take a 2-0 lead before Beets got Dalton Taylor to fly out to center fielder Cade Henry to end the threat.

Kilgore, down 2-0 early, got a lead-off triple from shortstop Todd House (a few great baseball names in this game: Todd House, Cade Henry, Cade Silvertooth, Hudson Pepper, right?).

Beets didn’t strand him there long. The Bulldogs’ pitcher helped his own cause with an RBI single, cutting Sabine’s lead in half (2-1).

Truman was hit by a pitch on the next at-bat. Beets was tagged out trying to steal third, Hawkins got Bullard to strike out, and Jordan Pierce grounded out to second to end any threat, but Kilgore did get a run, and trailed Sabine, 2-1, headed to the top of the second.

Speaking of that, the Diamond ‘Dogs made it a quick top of the inning. Beets struck out Zane Shearer, walked Hudson McNatt, got McPherson to fly out to Henry in center field, and then got Loveless to strike out.

Kilgore would take the lead – for good, as it turned out – in the bottom of the second.

Hendrickson walked, and Kayson Brooks came on as his courtesy runner. Then left fielder Cox came up, singled to center (could have been called an error – it was close) to Zane Shearer and Brooks reached second.

A balk was called on Hawkins, sending Brooks to third, and Cox to second. But it wouldn’t matter much. Henry smacked a double to right field, and Brooks scored. Cox was given the stop sign at third by coach Eugene Lafitte, and Kilgore had tied things up at 2-all.

They’d go on to get in front in that half-inning. After Hawkins struck out Jackson Tucker-Phillips, House hit a grounder to shortstop Taylor, Taylor elected to take the out at first to Pepper. That allowed Cox to score, breaking the tie (3-2 Kilgore). Henry moved on to second. Hawkins got Beets to pop up to Taylor on the next play for the third out, but Kilgore claimed its first lead of the day, 3-2 – a lead, as it turned out, the Bulldogs wouldn’t relinquish.

Sabine had another quick inning in the top of the third – 1-2-3 – as Silvertooth, Sparks and Pepper were all uncharacteristically sat down by the Bulldogs’ defense, and the bottom of the third was disaster for the Cardinals on the scoreboard.

After an out was put in the books, Bullard and Pierce hit back-to-back singles. Hendrickson earned a walk to load the bases for Cox – and boy, did he deliver, a 2-RBI double that scored Bullard and Pierce, left Brooks, courtesy-running for Hendrickson, standing on third, and made it 5-2 Kilgore.

But it would get worse for the Cards. Henry, who tormented Sabine all day long from the plate and in center field, did it AGAIN, this time putting a ball into play and leading to an error, a two-run error that allowed both Brooks and Cox to score – and give the Bulldogs a 7-2 advantage.

Hawkins struck out JTP, then walked House, and gave way to new pitcher Ashtyn Pierce. But House was a rude “houseguest” on the base path. He stole second base. And Henry was right behind him. He scored on an error and House went to third on the same miscue, making it 8-2 Kilgore.

Beets finally hit a grounder into the infield, reached on an error and House scored to boot (9-2 KHS).

Sabine finally got out of the nightmare with a ground-out but not before giving up six runs, completely, totally swinging the game in the Bulldogs’ favor.

Hawkins remained in the game, just not at pitcher, and singled to left field in the top of the fourth. He tried to advance to second on a grounder hit by Taylor on the next at-bat, but Taylor got to first safely on the fielder’s choice, as Truman elected to take the out at second to Kolton Hale, and get Hawkins out.

Beets got Shearer to fly out to Cox in left field, gave up a single to McNatt, but then got McPherson to ground out to Hale at second to get out of the inning and end the threat.

After a neatly-wrapped scoreless and quick inning in the bottom of the fourth, the Cardinals picked up a couple of runs in the top of the fifth. Pierce hit a grounder and reached on an error; Silvertooth hit a line-drive single into right field that sent Pierce to third and he would score on the next at-bat, a single by Sparks, also to right (9-3).

Kilgore would turn a double play during Pepper’s at-bat: he hit the ball to Truman at third – Truman tossed to Beets at second, then Beets to Bullard at first. In the course of that action, though, Silvertooth scored from third (9-4).

Hawkins reached on an error in the next at-bat, but Taylor flied out to Henry in center field to end the threat, with Sabine still trailing by five runs.

Kilgore would score one more run in the bottom of the fifth: Cox, who was hit by a pitch to lead off, then advanced to second on a grounder by Henry and to third on a passed ball, scored on an RBI single by House.

On the mound for Kilgore, Beets went four innings, facing 19 batters. He threw 64 pitches, allowing two runs, one of them earned, struck out three and walked just one. Cason Edney came on for the final two innings, allowing three runs, just one earned, but walked no one. He faced 11 batters, and allowed four hits.

For Sabine, Hawkins went 2 2/3 innings, and also threw 64 pitches and faced 19 batters, just like Beets. He gave up nine runs, five of them earned, on seven hits and three walks. He struck out three. Pierce threw 44 pitches in 2 1/3 innings, with one walk, one strikeout, and allowed one run, earned, on one hit.

Sabine had nine hits, all of them singles. McPherson, Silvertooth and McNatt each had two, and Sparks, Hawkins and Pepper each had one. Sparks had an RBI, and McPherson, Silvertooth, McNatt and Sparks all scored, and McNatt had a walk.

Kilgore had eight hits: House had a triple, a single, 2 RBI and scored twice, and walked once. Cox had a double, a single, 2 RBI and scored three times. Henry had a double and  3 RBI and scored once. Bullard had a single and scored. Beets had an RBI single and walked. Pierce had a single and scored a run.

And it’s the sixth straight year the event is sponsored by Whataburger. Their menu can be accessed online right here 24 hours a day, seven days a week – Whataburger | Order Online with Curbside and Delivery.