By By Marty Stamper/EMG sports assistant
June 28, 2003
District Four scored two unearned runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to snap a 4-4 tie and remain unbeaten in the 2003 State Games Baseball Tournament with a 6-5 win over District Three Friday night at Scaggs Field on the Meridian Community College campus.
Rain delayed the start of Friday's games by four hours, 37 minutes. As a result, District Five's winners' bracket game with District Six was not completed by press time.
In today's action, District Three faces District One at 10 a.m. At 1 p.m., the District Five/District Six loser takes on District Eight. Other games are slated for 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. based on the outcome of Saturday's first two games.
District Four's Matt Johnson of Eupora left the mound trailing 2-0 despite four no-hit innings.
District Four struck for four runs in the bottom of the fifth to grab a brief 4-2 lead. The big hit in the inning was a two-run triple by Kosciusko's Torrey Stewart to the warning track in right-center.
District Three pulled even with a pair of runs in the top of the sixth. Ben Maddox of Greenville St. Joseph tied the game at 4-4 with a sacrifice fly after Craig Taylor of Bayou Academy scored the first run of the inning on an error.
Starkville's Will Sneed drove in the go-ahead run in the bottom of the sixth on an infield grounder. Colten Anthony of Eupora plated what turned out to be the winning run on a sacrifice fly.
District Three got one run back in the top of the seventh on a single by Ben Turner of Washington School. Joshua Helton of Victory Christian got the win with 1.1 innings of relief.
Jeff Sides of Indianola went the distance in taking the loss. He allowed only five hits. Hunter Abrams of New Hope had an RBI-double for District Four. Anthony Palasini had an RBI-single for District Three.
District One 6
District Two 5
Amory's Mitch Moreland tossed a complete game six-hitter as District One eliminated District Two from the tournament. Moreland struck out 12 and all five runs scored off him were unearned as District One committed four errors.
At the plate, Moreland had a single and a double. Clay Weatherford of Itawamba AHS had a double and scored two runs for District One. Patrick Thompson of West Point and Jared Koon of Tupelo both had an RBI-single.
Charlie Edwards of Water Valley had two singles and scored three runs for District Two. Losing pitcher Wes Grillette of Oxford and Cory Jackson of Grenada both had a double.
In six innings of relief, Grillette struck out nine. He allowed six hits and four runs, three of which were earned.
District Eight 5
District Seven 1
Kyle Edwards of Petal tossed a seven-hit complete game and Michael Rigney of Picayune blasted a three-run homer to left field in the fourth inning as District Eight staved off elimination.
Edwards struck out seven. The only run he allowed was unearned in the bottom of the seventh. Five of District Seven's seven hits came in the final two frames.
Paul Gatchell of Pascagoula had two triples and a single for District Eight. District Seven got two singles from Garrett Jones of Natchez Cathedral. Te Riley's infield hit in the seventh plated District Seven's only run of the tournament. Riley also is from Cathedral.
Joseph Langham got the loss, allowing five runs, four of which were earned, in 3.1 innings.