No. 1 Harrisburg rebounds, and other O'Fallon/Triad Baseball Classic first-round results
May 8, 2010
By Sean Duncan
“Not many innings we’ve been down this season,” said
Yet there the Bulldogs were, trailing host Triad by four runs heading into the bottom of the fourth. No worries.
“One through nine, any guy on our team can get it done,” said senior second baseman Cain Sheldon, the team’s seven-hitter who went 2-for-3 with a triple, double, two RBI and two runs. “We always have a different guy step up and get the job done.”
Sheldon was the catalyst in both the Bulldogs’ big innings. In the fourth, after freshman sensation Ryne Roper drew a two-out walk, Sheldon followed with a run-scoring double, spurring a four-run inning to tie the game at 6-6. Then, in the Bulldogs’ five-run sixth to put the game away, Sheldon’s RBI triple gave Harrisburg a lead it wouldn’t relinquish.
Sheldon wasn’t the only hero. Junior Nick Borders, a mid-inning replacement in right field, came in and delivered a pair of RBI doubles following Sheldon’s clutch hits.
“We have a whole lot of talent on this team,” said Borders. “No matter if you’re starting or not, you’ve got to be ready and get it done when your number is called.”
Perhaps the single biggest hit for Harrisburg came from the bat of junior pinch-hitter Logan Leverett, who came in cold off the bench to blast a two-run home run to tie the game at 6-6 in the bottom of the fourth inning. Leverett recently came back from a hip injury and has hit “four or five home runs in about 20 at-bats,” Thompson said. “That ball he hit was mashed.”
Triad tied the game at 2-2 in the third, and it looked as though it had knocked
“We’re not used to being down,” said Dowdy, who finished 2-for-4 with two RBI. “We have bats one through nine, and three off the bench, so we’re never out of the game.”
Freshman Keaton Wright led Triad with three hits, and Hall went 2-for-3 with three RBI. Brett Loos added two hits and sophomore catcher Dylan Johnson hit a solo home run in the third.
With the win,
In the
Miles Quintal went 2-for-3 with a home run, and Sam Summerlin also had two hits for the host Panthers (15-9). Senior Alex Young worked out of a bases-loaded, one-out jam to earn the win in relief.
Holt advanced by defeating
The championship game of the O’Fallon/Triad Baseball Classic is at