J. Hoyt Warren/Wayne Edwards Baseball Tournament
Junior Alex Coates and freshman Sincere Smith combined to pitch a 4-hitter and lead East Bladen to a 4-2 victory over Freedom Christian Saturday in the opening round of the J. Hoyt Warren/Wayne Edwards Baseball Tournament at Douglas Byrd High in Fayetteville.
Coates pitched 5-plus innings to pick up the victory and allowed 2 runs on 4 hits and 3 walks, while striking out five. Smith relieved in the sixth and pitched 2 hitless innings, striking out 2 to pick up the save.
Coach Russell Priest’s Eagles, now 4-7, will play Grays Creek (5-5), a 13-2 first-round winner over Seventy First, Monday at 4 p.m. in a semi-final game.
The Eagles grabbed a quick 3-0 lead in the first inning. Smith was hit by a pitch, stole second base and raced home when senior Colby Hester laced a single to right-centerfield.
Sophomore catcher Kyle Tatum bounced a single over third base, and both runners moved up on a wild pitch. Hester darted home on a wild pitch, and senior Matthew Massengill’s ground ball plated Tatum.Coates launched a double to left-centerfield, but was stranded there.
Freedom’s Tyler Sawyer knocked in a Patriot run with a second-inning single to trim the margin to 3-1.
Hester hammered a triple over the left-fielder’s head leading off the third inning, but was thrown out trying to score on a ground-out to end the inning.
Coates blasted a double to deep left field to begin the fourth inning. Junior Nikita Owens lined a single to left-centerfield to drive in Coates and stretch the Eagle lead to 4-1.
Junior Tyquan McMillian ripped a single off the pitching rubber, and Smith drew a walk to load the bases with 2 out, but a called third strike ended the threat.
Freedom pitcher Conner Williams smashed a triple to the left-centerfield gap with one out in the fifth inning, and scored on Dillon Taylor’s sacrifice fly to slice the lead to 4-2.
Matthew Johnson reached on an infield hit leading off the Freedom sixth and reached third base on a sacrifice and a wild pitch. However Smith struck out a pinch-hitter and retired the next batter on a ground ball to shortstop to end the inning.
Coates batted 3-3 with 2 doubles and a run scored. Hester finished 2-3 at the plate with a triple, a run batted in and a run scored. Tatum, Owens, McMillian and McKinley Raynor added one hit each for the winners.
Owens and Massengill had one rbi each. Tatum and Smith scored one run each.
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