A five-run sixth inning rally allowed the Fort Mill Yellow Jackets to even the series against rivals Catawba Ridge.
Fort Mill beat the Copperheads 5-4 to improve to 2-3 overall and 1-1 in Region 3-5A. Catawba Ridge dropped to 1-1 in the region and 5-2 overall. The series is tied a game apiece.
“We went 16 or 17 innings without scoring dating back to Saturday’s game,” said Fort Mill head coach Travis Collier. “We didn’t score any Monday and we kept preaching to the kids to keep grinding. I am proud of the guys. They compete every day and do what we ask them to do. We have faced some really good arms. We are as battled tested early as anyone. We like what we are seeing. We just have to keep grinding every day.”
The Copperheads jumped out to a 1-0 after the top of the first with a Tyler Causey single to score Bryce Meil.
From there, both teams struggled to get any offense going in the right direction.
Catawba Ridge rattled off a couple of hits and Fort Mill for a couple as well, as the game became more of a pitcher’s duel.
Both teams would get occasional base runners, but Catawba Ridge was able to load the bases with the help of singles from Jack Provenzano and Caden Howard and a walk to Brayden Hughes in the fourth. However, Fort Mill’s Sullivan Townley was able to battle back and get out of the inning without allowing a run.
Fort Mill also threatened getting to runners on in the bottom of the inning, but like the Copperheads, couldn’t get them in as Catawba Ridge starter Cole Stukitz got out of the inning.
Townley came out in the fifth inning after a leadoff double by Ethan Solnick for the Copperheads. He was replaced by Daniel McCloskey. After two outs, Provenzano singled in Solnick to put the Copperheads up 2-0, before Zach McMahon relieved Stukitz, who came in the fifth inning. Stukitz went four innings allowing three hits and struck out eight without walking any.
Fort Mill started coming around in the bottom of the sixth inning. Brayden Grogan walked and JT Leonhardt singled to put two on with no outs, before Ashton Mayo came in to pitch. The Jackets scored on a Braden Richardson single to drive in pinch runner Eli Cheske. Ivan Conrad was then hit by a pitch, leading to another Copperheads pitching change. Gabe Sipe then doubled scoring two giving Fort Mill a 3-2 lead with no outs. Back-to-back sacrifice flies from Charlie Thompson and Jackson Bendis plates two more runs for the Jackets.
Catawba Ridge didn’t go quietly in the top of the seventh. Walks to Jack Shellnut and Solnick put two on with no outs to set up a Meil double, before a pitching change for Fort Mill bringing in Devon Pascarella, who shutout the Copperheads to give Fort Mill the win.
“We had offensive opportunities throughout the game and we didn’t capitalize and they did,” said Catawba Ridge head coach Stas Swerdzewski. “We had some opportunities early in the game to take a bigger lead and it didn’t happen. Overall, we didn’t execute in any phase of the game as we could have. We are a scrappy group and we have proven that early on. It is one to one. We have to figure out how to get it done on Friday.”
Leonhardt led at the plate going 2-3 for Fort Mill and Provenzano went 3-4 with an RBI for Catawba Ridge. Meil went 1-3 with two RBIs as well for the Copperheads.
Game three is scheduled for 7:15 p.m. Friday, March 13 at Catawba Ridge.
March 11 Roundup
The Nation Ford baseball team fell to Northwestern 7-6 to even their series as the Falcons dropped to 4-2 overall and 1-1 in Region 3-5A.
The Fort Mill softball team beat the Chester Cyclones 5-1 on the road to improve to 2-2 on the season. Brooke Rosario went 2-4 at the plate for Fort Mill.
Mac Banks: mac@fortmillprepsports.com, @fortprep
