The Blythewood Bengals would explode for eight runs on eight hits in the eighth inning to get a 15-7 win over the Nation Ford Falcons baseball team Wednesday night.
Nation Ford head coach Jeff Stack seemed perplexed after the game about how crazy the seventh inning was and how the game slipped away.
“This is a talented team and they work hard,” Stack said. “This past stretch we had issues finishing. We are turning into a team that can fight. The next thing is winning games. It takes nights like this happening for that to happen.”
The seventh inning was wild as Blythewood scored four runs without a hit and the help of two Nation Ford errors. That allowed the Bengals to take a 7-5 lead. However, in the bottom of the inning, Simon Fernandez drove in two runs scoring Hunter Mac and Miles Baker tying the game and sending it to extra innings.
To start the game, Blythewood went scoreless in the top of the first despite threatening with two runners on base.
The Nation Ford bats started off as Jacob Petit led the bottom of the first off by reaching base on an error as Fernandez, Bradyn Deaton and Jackson Childs all got singles with Childs driving in two runs. Two batters later Jake Barrier doubled in Deaton to give the Falcons a 3-0 lead after the first inning.
The Bengals picked up two runs in the second inning after a hit batter and then a double before a passed ball led to the first run. A sacrifice fly led to the second run as Nation Ford was able to get out of the top of the inning without Blythewood squaring it up.
Nation Ford added a run in the third inning off a Mac single driving in Childs who walked to lead off the bottom portion of the inning.
In the fifth inning, Blythewood loaded the bases with just one out because of a walk and two singles, which led to starting pitcher Baker coming out and Killion Bennett coming in for relief.
The Bengals added a run in the inning off a passed ball, but Bennett was able to work out of the jam to maintain the Falcons’ lead.
Nation Ford added some insurance in the sixth inning. Petit got a one out single and then scored on an RBI single by Deaton but that didn’t prove to be enough as the seventh inning would lead to fireworks for both teams.
Fernandez went 2-3 with two RBIs in the game. Childs went 1-4 with two RBIs as well. The loss drops the Falcons to 4-6 overall and 1-4 in Region 3-5A.
Mac Banks: mac@fortmillprepsports.com, @fortprep
