By By Marty Stamper / EMG sports assistant
July 9, 2002
PHILADELPHIA A bases-loaded walk to Austin Watkins in the bottom of the sixth inning forced home Grant Wilson with the winning run for Philadelphia American in its 8-7 victory over East Mississippi in the first round of the Dixie Youth District 4 Minor League Tournament (9-10 year olds) at Northside Park Monday.
Philadelphia American trailed 7-6 heading into its final at-bat.
Philadelphia American faces West Lauderdale tonight at 7:30. West opened with a 20-7 rout of Choctaw. Monday's other first-round contest saw Westside National of Philadelphia defeat Philadelphia National 12-4. Today's other game has East Mississippi taking on Choctaw in a 6 p.m. elimination contest.
Philadelphia American took advantage of 10 walks, including a pair in the last inning, to edge East Mississippi. Four of Philadelphia American's runs reached base via base on balls.
East Mississippi scored three times in the top of the second for a 3-1 lead. Hunter Potate and Kyle Koch led off with singles and scored on a throwing error. Baly Hobson came home on an infield out by Maxwell Harmon.
Philadelphia American reclaimed the lead at 5-3 with four runs in the bottom of the second. Watkins hit a two-run single, Brandon Burton had an RBI-double, and Caleb McKee drew a bases-loaded walk.
The lead was brief as East Mississippi picked up three runs in the top of the third for a 6-5 advantage. Kasey Hinton plated a pair of runs with a single. Jonathan McMillan added an RBI-single.
East Mississippi extended its lead to 7-5 in the top of the fourth as Hobson singled and scored on a wild pitch.
Garrick Stoliby scored for Philadelphia American in the bottom of the fourth as he drew a walk and trotted home on a single by Burton.
Burton had a single and a double in Philadelphia American's six hits. McKee, Trey Hughes, Stoliby, and Watkins each had a single. The home team also committed four errors.
East Mississippi had eight hits. Hinton had two singles, while Dillon Boatner, McMillan, Potate, Hobson, Koch, and Hunter Graham had one single apiece. East Mississippi made only two errors.
Garrett Clark got the win with two perfect innings of relief in which he struck out three.
Hinton took the loss.
Westside National 12
Philadelphia National 4
Westside National took a 4-0 lead in the top of first inning and used six runs in the third to grab a 10-2 advantage in whipping Philadelphia National.
Three of the first-inning runs were the result of Philadelphia National errors with Ledarious Johnson adding an RBI-single.
Philadelphia National cut its deficit in half on a two-run single by Colby McLain in the bottom of the second.
Westside National upped its lead to 10-2 in the top of the third. The big blow of the inning was a three-run double to left-center by Jamie Hill. Tae Kirkland had an RBI-single in the frame. An error and a double steal plated the other two runs.
Philadelphia National left 12 runners on base in dropping to the losers' bracket. It left the bases loaded in both the fourth and fifth innings and failed to take advantage of 10 walks.
J-Rock Seales got the win, allowing four runs (two of which were earned) on three hits and six walks in four innings. He struck out seven. Andrius Huddleston tossed the final two innings.
Westside had nine hits. Huddleston had a single and a triple, Seales had a pair of singles, Joshua Stewart had a triple, Hill had a double, and Kirkland and Jerry Calloway both had a single.
McLain, Kyle Barrett, Anthony Williams, and Hunter Stovall each had a single to account for Philadelphia National's four hits. Williams took the loss, giving up four runs (only one of which was earned) in two innings.
West Lauderdale 20
Choctaw 7
West Lauderdale scored in all six innings of its win over Choctaw. West's biggest innings were the first with four runs, the second with five, and the sixth with six more.
Choctaw got four runs in the first inning and added three more in the third to close to within 11-7.
Nate Hodges and Matthew Alawine both had three singles for West. Garrett McBeth had a single and a double and Cody Miller added a pair of singles. Blake Thomas had a double. Dustin James, Clay Clearman, Gary Thomas, and Parker Davis each had a single.
First names were not available for Choctaw which had six hits.