Owensboro Catholic, Daviess County grabbed wins in their respective matchups on Tuesday, while Apollo grabbed a comeback win over Trinity (Whitesville) and Owensboro fell short in an offensive bout with Henderson County.
Apollo vs Trinity (Whitesville)
Some late offense was crucial for Apollo on Thursday, as the late outburst helped them pull off a 5-3 comeback win over the Raiders at home.
After a pair of scoreless innings to start the game, it was Trinity (Whitesville) who struck first by scoring on a dropped third strike after a pair of singles to start the top of the third. Senior Nate Hernandez dished out a two-run single the very next at-bat, giving the Raiders a 3-0 lead. Apollo responded in the bottom half of the inning though, as a walk and a hit by pitch led to an RBI single for junior Will Strode and a sacrifice fly from junior Easton Blandford to cut it to a 3-2 lead.
The Eagles were able to even things up at 3-3 an inning later, as eighth grader Ross Milburn entered the game as a courtesy runner for senior Charles Schneider after a single and stole second and third before scoring on an error by senior Trinity catcher Gavin Howard. After both teams left two runners on base in a scoreless fifth, it was Apollo who got going again after a leadoff walk for senior Aiden Wells.
It was Schneider who came through again with an RBI single the following at-bat, giving Apollo its first lead of the night at 4-3. A safety squeeze by junior Noah Cook followed it up after a groundout later in the bottom of the sixth, making it a 5-3 game.
It was there that Schneider finished his strong relief performance, working out of a bases-loaded jam—which occurred after he surrendered a pair of walks and a hit by pitch—to close the door on a 5-3 Apollo win. Schneider threw four innings on the mound, allowing no runs on one hit, while walking three and striking out six.
Senior Hayden Cash handled the first three innings, allowing two earned runs on four hits while striking out five. At the plate it was Strode, Blandford, Schneider and Cook who led the way, all tallying one RBI.
Senior Landon Huff tossed the first 5 ⅓ innings of the game for the Raiders, giving up three earned runs—five total—on six hits and three walks while striking out nine. Senior Nolan Mills handled the last two outs with perfection, while Hernandez led the way at the plate for Trinity with the only two RBIs of the game as Trinity fell to 3-6 overall.
Apollo on the other hand improves to 7-2 overall, taking a few days off before competing in their first Mustang Invitational game against Carlisle County at 3 p.m. on Monday, April 3.
Daviess County vs South Warren
The Panthers were able to overcome four errors on Thursday, defeating South Warren 2-1 in a pitcher’s duel at home.
Daviess County grabbed the first lead of the game thanks to a two-out rally in the bottom of the first, as a double by junior Lake Wilson and a walk led to an RBI single for senior Jackson Loucks. The Panthers gave the run right back in the top of the second though, as a pair of errors led to a 1-1 game heading into the third.
It wasn’t until the fifth that Daviess County was able to score again, as a pair of singles from junior Carter Nichols and senior Cason Troutman led to a two-out RBI single for Wilson to give them a 2-1 lead. The Panthers pitching staff took care of business the rest of the way, as the Spartans were limited to two hits en route to the 2-1 victory.
Loucks got the start, allowing one unearned run on two hits, while walking two and striking out three in 5 ⅔ innings. Troutman handled the last 1 ⅓ innings, allowing no hits, runs or walks to help secure the win.
Daviess County improves to 5-2 overall with the win, as they now look ahead to the Fort Walton Beach Bash starting against Nicholas County at 9 a.m. on Sunday, April 2.
Owensboro vs Henderson County
The Red Devils had their four-game losing streak snapped on Thursday, as a rough third inning led to a 14-7 road loss to Henderson County.
Despite giving up four runs in the bottom of the first Owensboro was in charge early, as a two-run single from sophomore Blake Kimbrell in the top of the first, as well as a solo home run from freshman Evan Hampton, an RBI groundout from sophomore Will Hume and an RBI single from sophomore Brady Benjamin all in the top of the third gave them a 5-4 lead. However, a trio of walks and errors mixed in with Colonels hits led to a nine-run bottom of the third and a 13-5 deficit for the Red Devils heading into the fourth.
From then on Henderson County had all momentum, as Owensboro scored two more runs but still fell 14-7. Junior Kaleb Ashley got the start, surrendering nine earned runs on eight hits and three walks in 2 ⅓ innings. Freshman Weston Price handled the last 3 ⅔ innings, allowing five runs—none of them earned—on three hits, while walking one and striking out three.
Kimbrell led the way for the Red Devils offensively with a pair of RBIs, while Hampton, Hume and Benjamin all had one each. Owensboro falls to 4-2 overall with the loss, as they’ll look to bounce back in their spring break week starting against Lakewood at 3:30 p.m. on Monday, April 3.
Owensboro Catholic vs South Spencer
The Aces continued its hot streak offensively on Thursday, scoring at least 16 runs for the second time this week in an 18-5 road win over South Spencer.
Owensboro Catholic wasted no time getting going, as sophomore Brady Atwell took five pitches to hit a leadoff home run to take a 1-0 lead. A walk and a single followed, allowing senior Jamison Wall to deliver an RBI single with a two-run single from freshman Barrett Evans the following at-bat to take a 4-0 lead with no outs in the top of the first.
South Spencer was able to get an out shortly after on a sac bunt, but an error, a safety squeeze added another pair of runs for the Aces. It didn’t stop there either as Atwell got an RBI single in his second at-bat of the inning, while two more errors and an RBI double from senior Grant Parson gave Owensboro Catholic a 10-0 lead after the end of the first.
South Spencer was able to get five runs throughout the rest of the contest, but the Aces never slowed down and got eight more runs en route to a monstrous 18-5 day. A number of players got involved in the offensive explosion, as Atwell, Wall, Evans, junior Deuce Sims, sophomore Luke Quinn and freshman Mason Moser all had two RBIs each, while Parson and sophomore Parker Heistand had one each as well.
Wall handled the first three innings of action, allowing one earned run on six hits and two walks while striking out five. Senior Thomas Eyre followed, allowing three earned runs on four hits, two walks and two strikeouts.
Owensboro Catholic improves to 4-3 overall with the win, having won three straight and scoring 38 runs in that span. The Aces now have a short break, as they return to action on Monday, April 3, in the Panama City Beach Bash to take on Frederick Douglass at 11:30 a.m.
