Majors lose first game in state tournament on a walk-off hit
Published 1:28 pm Tuesday, July 28, 2009
Just three outs away from a spot in the semifinals of the state tournament, the Bainbridge Majors all-star team couldn’t hold onto a slim 3-2 lead against Mercer Island Tuesday night.
Bainbridge entered the sixth inning up 3-2, but starting pitcher Trent Schulte reached his maximum pitch count of 85, and he was unable to pitch the sixth.
Lead-off hitter Blake Swanson came on to close the game, but two walks, followed by an Anthony Scalzo walk-off single clinched the 4-3 win for Mercer Island.
With the loss, Bainbridge moves into the loser bracket, only one loss away from the end of the season. Bainbridge next plays at 7:30 Thursday. Instead of having to win only two games, Bainbridge now needs five wins in four days to take home the state championship.
“This is one game,” said Bainbridge coach Doug McCombs. “One loss. But we’re not done. We get to keep playing baseball.”
Bainbridge put the first run on the board in the top of the third inning. Swanson led things off with a double to center field on the first pitch. On the very next pitch, Carter Kraus drove the ball to left, allowing Swanson to make a run for home. The ball beat Swanson to the plate, but he was able to avoid the tag and give Bainbridge a 1-0 lead. Kraus later scored on a passed ball.
Bainbridge had a chance to score a few more runs when pinch-hitter Cody Hawken smacked a liner up the middle, but Michael Bantle made a diving grab that saved multiple runs for Mercer Island.
Mercer responded in the fourth inning when Brandon Lawler got a hold of a pitch from Schulte and sent it over the fence in right-center field to cut the lead in half.
In the bottom of the fifth, with two outs, Riley Hawken dropped a fly ball, which allowed Bantle to score and tie the game.
Hawken was down on himself at the end of the inning. “I just made the biggest error of my life,” he said.
But Hawken redeemed himself in the next inning, hitting a bomb over the center field fence to give Bainbridge the lead back. Hawken said he wasn’t trying to make such a big play; he had one simple goal.
“Don’t get out.”
The game was a pitcher’s duel all the way, as Schulte pitched five innings, struck out eight batters, while only allowing three hits and two walks. Mercer Island pitcher Keegan Ogard battled Schulte all the way, allowing two runs on four hits and five walks. He also struck out nine Bainbridge batters in four and two-thirds innings.
Look for future live blogs from sports and other events.
