WHATABURGER OBC DAY ONE | Legacy escapes Sabine late; day one review (except Kilgore-F’ville)
Kilgore High School, of course, is the host. (Photo by MITCH LUCAS – ETBLITZ.COM)
In the first game of the 2024 Whataburger Oil Belt Classic, Hudson Pepper and the Sabine Cardinals took a 1-0 lead over Tyler Legacy’s junior varsity into the bottom of the fourth inning Thursday at Driller Park with a 1-0 lead, but eventually lost the game, 2-1.
Kilgore also lost on day one of the classic, 11-3, to Farmersville, in a late finish after a lightning-delayed contest between Central Heights and Hardin Jefferson.
In other scores from day one, New Diana topped Harmony, 3-2; Central Heights beat Harmony as well, 1-0; and Heights topped HJ, 15-3. Central Heights is undefeated this season, 6-0.
The games begin at 9 a.m. Friday with pool play once again: Harmony faces HJ. Kilgore meets Sabine in a rematch of the season opener at 11:05. New Diana takes on HJ at 1:10, and the Tyler Legacy JV faces Farmersville at 3:15.
Central Heights plays New Diana at 5:20, and then Legacy’s JV faces home-team Kilgore in the nightcap at 7:25.
All the games are played at Driller Park, of course, and each game carries an hour, 45-minute time limit.
Saturday’s schedule is based on the pool play games from the first two days. Game one on Saturday starts at 9 a.m., and has the two fourth-place teams meeting. The two third-place teams play each other at 11:15. The second-place teams play at 1:30, and the teams that lead the two pools play for the tournament championship at 3:45 p.m. Saturday.
For Sabine and Legacy’s JV, it was a tie headed into the top of the seventh. Dalton Taylor drew a lead-off walk for Sabine. But Legacy managed to notch three consecutive outs, stranding Taylor.
Legacy came to the plate and Pepper struck out the first batter, but the second reached on an error, and the third reached on a throwing error, and also went to second. A single sent the first runner to third base, and a second single scored the winning run (2-1).
For Sabine in the contest, Cole Loveless walked twice and had two stolen bases in a tight, tight game; Cade Silvertooth had a double; Braylen Hawkins also walked twice, and so did Taylor; Pepper had a single in the top of the third, the only other hit for the Cardinals. Hits were hard to come by in the game, as Pepper and Tyler Legacy pitching did a great job.
Pepper threw the complete seven innings of the contest, a masterful performance that included nine strikeouts and could very easily have gone the other way, with a win. It was that tight.
Whataburger – which has like the best burgers and food of, like, anywhere – is the sponsor of the classic and has been since 2019. Check out their menu here, Whataburger | Order Online with Curbside and Delivery, and stop by anytime. Whataburger is open 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and has something for everyone.
In addition to Whataburger (Jack and Susan Moore, and DKT Investments), sponsors of the Oil Belt Classic Tournament are Triple Play Sports, 5 Star Performance, ABA Aesthetics, Allen Bryson, Beets Energy, Citizens Bank, Geonix LP, K&F Industries, Kilgore Quick Care, Kilgore Tire Center, Magen Edmonson Realtor, Maxey Cerliano, McKinney Measurement, Mosby Mechanical, National Wholesale Supply, Noble Roofing, Pine Tar Sports, Rig Runners, RLM General Contractors, Sherwin Williams, Sherwood Wealth Partners, Silvertooth Family Dental, Southern Supply, Tatum Crane, and VeraBank.
Hospitality room sponsors are Whataburger, Zen Kitchen, Venetica Italian, The Back Porch, Chick-Fil-A, Don Chepes, and The Burrito Shop.