Trey Kelley
CENTERVILLE, Ind. – Hagerstown and Centerville got down and dirty on Wednesday as the two baseball teams battled for supremacy in the Tri-Eastern Conference.
After nine innings, the Tigers survived with a 5-3 victory over the Bulldogs to remain as the only unbeaten squad in the TEC.
“It’s just a testament to these guys and the work that they put in,” Hagerstown Head Coach Brad Catey said. “These guys work at it.”
With the win, Class 1A’s top-ranked team is now 15-0 overall and 6-0 in the conference as they clinched at least a tie for their sixth straight title.
“It’s one of the expectations,” Catey said. “It’s nice to win conference, but it’s kind of not the goal right now. It’s to go all the way.”
Centerville is 9-7, 3-1.
“We played out guts out, every kid on the team,” Centerville Head Coach Tracey Crull said. “I’m disappointed for the boys. They deserved it, but Hagerstown is a good ball team, if you don’t put them away, it’s going to come back and bite you.”
In the top of the ninth, the Tigers were able to claw out a pair of runs to earn the victory thanks to the bottom of their lineup.
“You’ve got two seniors down there and Cam Purtha who does a great job of getting a bunt down every time you ask,” Catey said. “If you’ve got a nine guy who can get a bunt down like that and set up the top of the order, good things are going happen.
“That’s just good small ball,” Catey added. “We ended up with bases loaded and nobody out and Owen Golliher comes up something good is going to happen.”
Kory Beeson singled off Matt Stamper to begin the inning and then Cody Wilson walked. Cam Purtha reached first with a hit as he got down a sacrifice bunt attempt.
Golliher and Trey Kelley each drove in a run with a single to give the Tigers the lead.
The Tigers got three runs in second inning as the bottom of the order produced the offense as Beeson started the rally with a RBI single.
Centerville begin its road back as Dalton Stevens knocked in a run with an infield single in the fourth.
The Bulldogs tied the contest in the fifth. After a run scored on an error, Trey Wilson’s RBI double made it 3-3.
“Trey Wilson made play after play and hit after hit to keep us in the ball game,” Crull said. “He kept us up in the dugout.”
Wilson also cut down the potential go-ahead run in the eighth as he threw out Hagerstown’s Drew Pyle at the plate.
Drew Pyle started on the mound for the Tigers and worked 3⅓ innings as he held the Bulldogs to a run with two strikeouts. Kelley finished the contest to get the win as he surrendered two runs with four strikeouts in 5⅔ innings.
Nolan Witte worked eight frames for the Bulldogs as he gave up three runs with four strikeouts.
“Nolan pitched eight beautiful innings,” Crull said.
Beeson and Kelley led the Tigers with three hits each, while Guy Rednour had three hits for the Bulldogs.
Both teams return to action on Thursday with road trips. The Tigers travel to Eastern Hancock, while Centerville visits Knightstown.