BASEBALL ROUNDUP | Kilgore bounces back; WO’s Wheat throws no-hitter; Tatum wins again; Overton, Gladewater as well
Backs against the wall with injuries all around the locker room, already 0-1 in District 16-4A after dropping a game last week to Carthage, coach Zach Hubbard’s team stood tall on Tuesday night at Pine Tree.
With Cason Edney on the mound – like he was during the Whataburger Oil Belt Classic, when Kilgore beat Central Heights – the Diamond ‘Dogs not only had the pitching going, but had the offense, as they overwhelmed the Pirates, 15-3.
Joseph Hendrickson had a triple, two singles and 5 RBI, along with Edney’s complete-game performance, as the ‘Dogs cruised to a win and evened their district record at 1-1.
They’ll host Pine Tree on Friday night at Driller Park, now a 3:30 p.m. varsity start.
In other scores around the ETBlitz.com coverage area on Tuesday: Staying in 16-4A, Spring Hill topped Henderson, 15-2, and Gilmer edged Chapel Hill, 3-2. In 16-3A, Tatum beat Arp in five innings, 11-1; Gladewater topped Troup, 6-0; and White Oak beat Sabine, 10-0. In 19-2A, Overton doubled up Carlisle, 10-5, and Leverett’s Chapel’s contest against Miller Grove was postponed due to wet field conditions.
Kilgore 15, Pine Tree 3: Kilgore’s Tuesday night effort was led by Edney, who went the distance on the mound and gave up just three hits and two walks all night. He also had seven strikeouts.
It was Kilgore’s third straight game without a loss; they beat Vidor, 4-3, and tied with Melissa, 4-all, to close out the Jasper Tournament over the weekend, and then the win over PT on Tuesday. Kilgore is 4-11-1 overall, but 1-1, as mentioned, where it matters in district play.
Hendrickson went 3-for-4 against PT, and Edney helped his own cause with two hits and 2 RBI.
Jaxon Warner, Salvador Cervantes, Jackson Tucker Phillips, Tanner Beets, Kolton Hale, Miles Applegate and Brayden Williams all each had a hit; Kilgore had 12 in all.
Warner, Kaeson Clayton, Kason Henry, Applegate, and Braylon Reyes all each had a stolen base.
Matt Cates took the loss on the mound for the Pirates (3-5 overall, 1-1 in district); he went five innings, giving up seven runs (only two earned) on three hits, and seven walks. He struck out six.
For PT at the plate, Trey Scroggins had a double, and Chris Nickoles had a single and an RBI.
Kilgore scored five runs in the third, five in the seventh, and four in the sixth. The Bulldogs did commit five errors, though, which will need to be cleaned up to face the likes of Carthage and Spring Hill in district play.
Spring Hill 15, Henderson 2: Things weren’t as magical for the Lions, who ran into a Spring Hill team that has made lots of noise in recent years.
Still, it was just the first loss in district play for Henderson (7-7 overall, 1-1 in district), who will have another shot at Spring Hill, this time on the road, on Friday at 7 p.m.
The Lions led early, 2-1, before the Panthers (11-5 overall, 2-0 in district play) went off for a five-run fourth inning.
Henderson had a tough time at the plate because of Spring Hill pitcher Grant Burton, who did give up five walks, but had 12 strikeouts in 6 2/3 innings.
Tatum 11, Arp 1: On the basketball court, Tatum’s Cooper Whiteus developed a reputation for causing all kinds of problems for the Eagles’ opponents, as they cruised through the UIL 3A-Division I playoffs and won a state title.
Less than a week later, guess what Whiteus is doing for Tatum baseball?
Yeah, causing problems for opponents.
Tuesday night at home, Whiteus had a double, a single and 3 RBI to help his Eagles move to 2-0 in District 16-3A with an 11-1 win over Arp.
Tatum is also 9-4 overall this season.
Colt Bullard only gave up one hit in 4 2/3 innings on the mound. Bullard got the win and allowed the one hit, two walks and had 11 strikeouts.
Also for Tatum, Grant Adcock and Cayden Tatum, another basketball Eagle, each had a double and Adcock an RBI; Kody Hines had a double, a single and 2 RBI, and Dustin Henigan had a single and 2 RBI.
AB Martin had a hit and an RBI for Arp (4-8-1 on the season), who drops to 0-2 in district play.
The two teams will meet again Friday in Arp, a scheduled 4:30 p.m. start for junior varsity, and varsity to follow around 7.
White Oak 10, Sabine 0: Coach Charles Foshee’s White Oak Roughnecks played their first District 16-3A game of the season at home Tuesday night against rival Sabine, and Collin Wheat did his best impersonation of a mailman: he delivered.
Wheat, in five innings pitched, struck out 10 Sabine batters, walked only two, and allowed no hits, or no runs – a Tuesday night no-hitter by the senior.
He got help at the plate. He had a hit of his own, and Jaxsen Ludlow, Jordy Robertson, Brady Greenwood, Levi Sipes and Logan Langewisch each had a hit, as well.
Langewisch had 3 RBI; Greenwood had 2 RBI, and Ludlow, Robertson, Sipes and Will Thomas each had one. Sipes and Langewisch each had a double, and Robertson scored three times; Langewisch, twice.
Tyson McKinney had two stolen bases, and Sipes, one.
Sabine falls to 0-11 and 0-2 in district with the loss.
They’ll meet again Friday at Sabine, a 4:30 p.m. JV start, varsity afterward.
Gladewater 6, Troup 0: In a battle of good 16-3A teams, Gladewater pitcher Sean Burke was the difference.
Burke had another solid outing on the mound, this time against a solid Troup lineup. Burke threw all seven innings, allowing no runs on four hits, walked just one and struck out six in helping to lift coach Zac Spears’ Bears to their 10th win of the season.
Both teams are 1-1 in district play, and they’ll play again Friday, this time at Gladewater.
The Bears had five hits in the game: Aubry Floyd had two of them, and an RBI. Maddaxx Vasquez, Luke Brown and Landen Kin each had a hit, and Brown and King an RBI each. Mason Budro didn’t have a hit, but did have 2 RBI in the game. Gladewater led 1-0 before scoring four runs in the top of the fifth.
Troup (10-5 overall) had five errors, uncharacteristic for the Tigers.
They did have four hits: Hayden Huml, Carson Davenport, James Pierce and Kash Hardy each had one, and Davenport and Pierce each hit a double.
Caden Graves went 5 1/3 innings for the Tigers on the mound, allowing five runs (only two earned) and six hits; he walked four and struck out four in 27 batters faced.
Hardy pitched 1 2/3 innings, allowing one unearned run, with a walk and a strikeout.
Overton 10, Carlisle 5: Overton scored four runs in the first two innings, and by the time the Indians plated a run in the third, the Mustangs bounced right back with two more – it proved to be too much for Carlisle, who had three errors in the game.
Overton (11-3 overall, 1-0 in District 19-2A play) is red-hot: they’ve won five of their last six.
The Mustangs will visit Carlisle on Friday.
In Tuesday night’s win, Bryce Still threw six innings, allowing two runs, one of them earned, on five hits. He walked four and struck out six.
Bryson Bobbitt allowed three runs (two earned) on three hits and had a strikeout in one inning pitched.
For Carlisle on the mound, Jaxon Goss went 3 2/3 innings, allowing six runs (four earned) on three hits, and he walked six and struck out five. Jaydon Nardoza struck out two, walked two, and allowed four runs (all earned) on two hits in 2 1/3 innings.
Overton had seven hits. Brody Brown and Braxton Harper each had two of them; one of Brown’s was a double, and he finished with 3 RBI. Harper had two hits and an RBI. Mason Rowe went 1-of-4, but with a double, and had 3 RBI.
Rylan Holleman had a hit and an RBI, and Bobbitt had a hit, as well.
Nardoza had 3 RBI for the Indians (4-5, 0-1), and Brandon Garza went 2-for-4.
