After the starting pitcher gave up five runs in the home half of the first inning, a pair of gutsy relief performances allowed visiting Riverheads to climb back into the game and steal a 7-5 win over county rival Stuarts Draft. The Gladiators are now 2-0 on the young season.
The Big Red took a 2-0 lead in the top half of the first, but then fell behind due to that five-inning Cougar explosion. But the visitors crept back with two in the fourth and then tied the score in the fifth. That led to an action-packed sixth inning in which the Cougars were on their way to working out of a jam until a couple of defensive miscues allowed RHS to score its winning runs.
After recording two quick outs in the top of that sixth inning, the Cougars struck out the final batter. But the ball got away from the catcher, requiring a throw down to first to finalize the out. But that throw got away from the Cougar first baseman, allowing the RHS batter to head for second. Sorry I can't identify him because I will need a couple of games to learn the players.
Whoever he was, he then made a bad base-running decision and was caught in a rundown between second and third. The visitor dugout blocks third base from the visiting stands, so most of us could not see the play but the base runner was called safe, and moments later, the Gladiator pitching ace Brody Phillips brought him home with a single to left, followed by another RBI from Holden Fitzgerald that brought Phillips home to put the Big Red ahead 7-5.
In addition to his key hit, Phillips had already earned his paycheck by shutting down the Cougar offense for innings two through five. Each team threatened often but whenever he needed the key out, Phillips got the job done.
But an equally impressive pitching performance took place in the home half of the sixth, when the Gladiators sent freshman Jackson Berkstresser out to the mound. Since Phillips had been doing well, that may have been a pitch count issue.
Berkstresser got into immediate trouble as the Cougars got a couple of early baserunners. So at least momentarily, it looked like we were headed for one of those games where the home team pulls it out in the late innings. But the youngster kept his composure and struck out the side to keep Riverheads in the lead. I believe the Cougars may have left the bases loaded, but don't quote me on that.
I actually left at that point so as to see the endings of the first two March Madness games. Both were great by the way, with Iowa rallying past Nebraska and Purdue nipping Texas on a tip-in with less than a second left. So I can't speak for any drama that may have occurred in the seventh, but I got a pretty quick text with the final score, which tells me the Cougars may have gone down in the seventh without too much of a fight.
Speaking of having to fight, the wind tonight at the Cougar diamond was fierce at times. There were frequent dust storms and cap-chases, so if it bothered the players half as much as it did the fans, then "hats off" to both teams for managing those elements. There did appear to be some plays that were directly impacted by the wind.
But wind is wind and as they say, "a win is a win," and the Gladiators will take this one and move to 2-0 in district play. I was told they are scheduled to play Stonewall Jackson tomorrow for their home opener, but with rain in the forecast, that one may be a "weather-permitting" deal.
The Big Red took a 2-0 lead in the top half of the first, but then fell behind due to that five-inning Cougar explosion. But the visitors crept back with two in the fourth and then tied the score in the fifth. That led to an action-packed sixth inning in which the Cougars were on their way to working out of a jam until a couple of defensive miscues allowed RHS to score its winning runs.
After recording two quick outs in the top of that sixth inning, the Cougars struck out the final batter. But the ball got away from the catcher, requiring a throw down to first to finalize the out. But that throw got away from the Cougar first baseman, allowing the RHS batter to head for second. Sorry I can't identify him because I will need a couple of games to learn the players.
Whoever he was, he then made a bad base-running decision and was caught in a rundown between second and third. The visitor dugout blocks third base from the visiting stands, so most of us could not see the play but the base runner was called safe, and moments later, the Gladiator pitching ace Brody Phillips brought him home with a single to left, followed by another RBI from Holden Fitzgerald that brought Phillips home to put the Big Red ahead 7-5.
In addition to his key hit, Phillips had already earned his paycheck by shutting down the Cougar offense for innings two through five. Each team threatened often but whenever he needed the key out, Phillips got the job done.
But an equally impressive pitching performance took place in the home half of the sixth, when the Gladiators sent freshman Jackson Berkstresser out to the mound. Since Phillips had been doing well, that may have been a pitch count issue.
Berkstresser got into immediate trouble as the Cougars got a couple of early baserunners. So at least momentarily, it looked like we were headed for one of those games where the home team pulls it out in the late innings. But the youngster kept his composure and struck out the side to keep Riverheads in the lead. I believe the Cougars may have left the bases loaded, but don't quote me on that.
I actually left at that point so as to see the endings of the first two March Madness games. Both were great by the way, with Iowa rallying past Nebraska and Purdue nipping Texas on a tip-in with less than a second left. So I can't speak for any drama that may have occurred in the seventh, but I got a pretty quick text with the final score, which tells me the Cougars may have gone down in the seventh without too much of a fight.
Speaking of having to fight, the wind tonight at the Cougar diamond was fierce at times. There were frequent dust storms and cap-chases, so if it bothered the players half as much as it did the fans, then "hats off" to both teams for managing those elements. There did appear to be some plays that were directly impacted by the wind.
But wind is wind and as they say, "a win is a win," and the Gladiators will take this one and move to 2-0 in district play. I was told they are scheduled to play Stonewall Jackson tomorrow for their home opener, but with rain in the forecast, that one may be a "weather-permitting" deal.