What a story:
Top-Ranked Mount Olive Scores Four Runs in Bottom of Ninth to Top Ouachita Baptist
SAUGET, ILL. - Top-ranked Mount Olive used four runs in the bottom of the ninth inning to rally from a 5-2 deficit against No. 4 ranked Ouachita Baptist en route to a 6-5 victory in a first round game that began Sunday night and concluded Monday morning at GCS Ballpark.
The Trojans improve to 55-6 and advance to play the winner of the Ashland and Tampa game Tuesday at 6:30 p.m., while Ouachita Baptist, playing in its first World Series, falls to 47-15, and will play the loser of that game Tuesday at 2:30 p.m. in an elimination game.
Mount Olive's Josh Harrison singled down the right field line with one out and the bases loaded, scoring pinch runner Mike Kicia for the game winner.
"First of all, I'd like to congratulate our kids on battling," said Mount Olive head coach Carl Lancaster. "They just beat a really great ball team. I'm proud of our guys for coming out and not giving up and battling."
Jerry Helferich (6-5) took the loss for Ouachita Baptist, allowing four runs on three hits. He walked four and struck out two in two innings of work.
Mount Olive had jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the second inning, but saw Ouachita Baptist score single runs in the fourth and fifth innings to the tie the game at 2-2. Then following a 73-minute weather delay Sunday night, the Tigers went up 4-2 on a walk and a wild pitch. After spending 11 minutes on the field following that delay, the game was officially suspended in the bottom of the seventh inning until Monday morning.
The Tigers tacked on one more run in the eighth before Mount Olive's rally.
"Mount Olive hung in there and battled," said Ouachita Baptist head coach Scott Norwood. "It was a long, drawn out game over two days. We just didn't hold on. Someone has to come through the loser's bracket and I plan on it being us."
Patrick Ball (3-1) garnered the win for the Trojans in one and two-thirds innings.
Mount Olive collected 11 hits in the victory with Harrison, Jesse Lancaster, Alex Vertcnik and Dylan Holton recording two each. Jason Sherrer notched two RBIs on a single to left center in the ninth.
Destan Makonnen paced the Ouachita Baptist with two hits, an RBI and a run scored. The Tigers finished with eight hits.
If only the local paper in Wayne County updated its website for news like this, or the News & Observer covered Division II sports -- especially when the number one seed is less than two hours' drive from its main office -- then I wouldn't have had to surf the net for twenty minutes finding the good news. But there's hope, if Mount Olive takes Tuesday night's game, too!
Good luck, Trojans!
No comments:
Post a Comment