In a game where a plethora of runners were left on base, it was Owensboro Catholic who was able to break through late in order to defeat Daviess County 7-2 at home.
The Panthers posed an early scoring threat in the first, getting runners in scoring position after singles from junior Decker Renfrow and junior Cason Troutman. However, a fly out to right turned into a double play that ended the inning when senior Everett Munsey gunned the runner at the plate.
It was Munsey who in fact came through for the Aces in the bottom half of the inning, driving in senior Luke Evans on an RBI groundout after his leadoff triple.
Both teams left a number of runners in scoring position in the second and while the Panthers did again in the top of the third, they were able to get a run first. Having worked the bases loaded, Sophomore Lake Wilson was hit by a pitch and a run crossed the plate.
With a chance to help himself, senior Owen Payne battled to a 2-2 count but ultimately struck out and sent the game into the bottom of the third tied at 1-1.
Owensboro Catholic worked the bases loaded themselves later in the inning, only getting one run via walk to give them a 2-1 lead going into the fourth.
Payne had battled his way through four innings and limited the damage by the Aces to just the two runs, but in the fifth Owensboro Catholic broke it open.
Two doubles led to an RBI single from freshman Brady Atwell who started the scoring, before junior Grant Parson was hit and the bases were loaded. Senior John Michael Frey proceeded to single to center to make it 4-1 and then a Daviess County error plated another run.
After Evans second RBI groundout of the day made it 6-1, Daviess County was finally able to close out the inning with a pop-out to short.
The Aces would go on to get an insurance run from an Atwell single in the bottom of the sixth, but Daviess County just couldn’t muster up enough offense in the top of the seventh and fell to Owensboro Catholic 7-2.
“We had some really good quality at-bats…” Head Coach Jody Hamilton said. “We’re getting better. We’re learning. We’re trying to find what our identity is I should say, because in the beginning we were a different swinging kind of team. But we’re getting a lot better at what we’re wanting to do.”
Atwell led the way with a pair of RBIs for the Aces, while Evans, Munsey, Parson, Frey and freshman Parker Heistand all recorded one each on the day. Senior Sam McFarland led the team with three hits, while Frey, Atwell and senior Braden Mundy all had a pair of hits.
Senior Hayden Ward got the start for the Aces, giving up just one run on five hits while walking two and striking out three in four innings. Junior Jamison Wall tossed three innings of relief, allowing just one run on four hits while walking one and striking out three.
Hamilton was pleased with his pitching staff’s poise as well, as they worked out of a number of jams on the day. Noting that he wants to test his players early in the season to help them grow, seeing his guys step up for a district win is a good sign for future growth.
“I’m not a guy that thinks you have to be the No. 1 seed at the end of the year,” Hamilton said. “I’m a guy who wants to build for the end of the year. I want to throw guys now to see what they can do in a big game. Jamison’s probably never thrown in a big game yet and that was good for him…We just wanna get better as we go. They’re learning and I’m learning.”
For Daviess County, Wilson and Brubaker were the only players to record RBIs, while Renfrow and Troutman led the way with three and two hits respectively.
Head Coach Austin Clay felt like his team battled, but there was just some things they are capable of doing that led to the loss against a tough Aces team.
“I didn’t think we played bad necessarily, I just think they’re a good team and we gave them a couple outs,” Clay said. “Not necessarily by making errors, but just plays we could’ve made. Against good teams like that you can’t really give them anything.”
Despite the tough loss, the Panthers have battled their way to a 6-2 start and have competed well in every game this year. Clay said that they still have room for improvement, but has been thrilled with the focus his team has shown all season.
“I think we can play with anybody, but I also think we know we can show up not to play and we can get beat by anybody too,” Clay said. “We’ve got a good group of kids that are fun to be around and come to the park everyday to work and get better. I think the biggest thing holding us back so far is giving too many free bases… I think that stuff will come. I’ve been pretty pleased overall with our attitude and effort.”
Daviess County now has a day off before returning to the field, as they are set to return home on Thursday when they take on Bowling Green at 6 p.m.
Meanwhile, Owensboro Catholic moves to 7-1 overall following its first district win of the season, as they will look to grab its fifth straight win on the road against South Spencer at 6 p.m. on Wednesday.
