With each passing day of District 5-3A baseball, the question becomes: which team can derail or stop East Hamilton’s impressive string of wins.
The Hurricanes completed a sweep of Soddy-Daisy on Tuesday with a 7-1 victory at East Hamilton High School. With its 11th straight win overall, East Hamilton improved to 15-2 and 8-0 in district action.
Coach Steve Garland’s squad has also swept Walker Valley, Cleveland and Ooltewah, in addition to the Trojans (9-7, 3-3).
East Hamilton’s next challenge is against Bradley Central next Monday and Tuesday. The Bears are 11-6 overall and 5-1 in league play after tripping Walker Valley, 10-7. Ooltewah (9-8, 4-4) is in fourth place following an 11-1 home loss against Cleveland.
Noah Pridmore worked 5 2/3 innings, scattering seven hits and allowing one earned run. He struck out four and walked two. Walker O’Rear relieved Pridmore and retired the only batter he faced on a pop-up. Chase Roberts pitched the seventh and struck out three and walked one.
Soddy-Daisy’s Landon Maynor settled down after the Canes scored four first-inning runs and finished with a six-hitter. He gave up seven runs but only two were earned. He struck out six and walked four and took the loss.
In the Canes’ first, Jack Stone was hit by a pitch, Will Campbell reached on an error and Bradley Garland walked to load the bases. A Pridmore single drove in the first run. Another run came home when Pierce Durham was safe on another error. Blaine Savage drew a bases-loaded walk for the third run and Josh Brown walked to force n the fourth.
Soddy-Daisy scored once in the third when Hayden Maynor singled, went to second on Landon Maynor’s sacrifice bunt and scored on Harrison Travis’ single.
The Trojans’ Aaron Couch and Noah Ferguson each singled to start the fourth inning. However, the Canes turned a sacrifice bunt into a double play and another runner was picked off to end the threat.
In East Hamilton’s fifth, Campbell led off with a double and Bradley Garland’s single moved courtesy runner Cole Hixson to third. Durham’s bloop single scored both runners, extending the lead to 6-1.
The Canes capped their scoring in the sixth when Conner Thornburg singled and came home on Campbell’s second double of the game. Campbell was the lone player with multiple hits for the Canes.
Travis and Couch each had two hits for Soddy-Daisy.
Bradley Central 10, Walker Valley 7: It took three Bradley Central pitchers to cool off Walker Valley’s bats. The Mustangs hurlers had more trouble containing the Bears’ sluggers as well.
The Mustangs scored six runs in the first two innings. The Bears put up all 10 of their runs in the first three innings.
Dylan Standifer singled, Tucker Still reached on an error and Ryan Black had a bunt single to load the bases. With two outs, Caden Sherlin walked to force in the first run. Aiden McClary, running for Standifer, scored on a passed ball and Jake Thompson’s hit pushed Sherlin home.
In the second, Standifer, who went 3 for 4, singled to center and Still doubled him home. Still went to third on an error and scored on a passed ball.
The Bears hit the Mustangs with another four-run outburst in the third inning.
With one out Sherlin doubled to center and Thompson walked. Freddy Johnson’s two-out triple allowed Sherlin and Thompson to score. Standifer followed with a triple and Johnson put up the Bears’ 10th run.
Jordan Munck, Parker Caldwell and Gunner Reece each had two RBIs for the Mustangs. Munck also scored twice.
Bradley’s Spencer Lewis picked up the win with three innings of one-run relief. He gave up two hits, walked three and struck out none. Cooper Casteel finished up with two scoreless innings and struck out five.
Walker Valley starter Jake Smith took the loss, giving up eight hits and 10 runs while striking out five and walking two.
Cleveland 11, Ooltewah 1: Asa Blake threw a four-hitter and got nine-hit support in pitching the Blue Raiders past the Owls at A.C. “Bud” Ball Field.
Blake struck out six and walked one and the lone run allowed was unearned.
Cleveland had a 4-1 lead after four innings and put the game out of reach with a six-run fifth.
Sam Wyrick collected a one-out single and Jack Pullen and Landen Beaty each drew walks to lead the bases. Hunter Levert reached on one of six Ooltewah errors and Wyrick and Pullen both scored on an error by first baseman Chris Bayne.
Jonathan Powers then delivered a two-run single to right, pushing the Blue Raiders’ lead to 8-1. Hayden Tinsley’s double enabled Powers to score and Ryan Lee reached on an error and Tinsley scored the sixth run in the inning.
Wyrick, Powers and Tinsley each had two hits and scored twice. Levert, Powers and Tinsley each drove in two runs.
Payton Keiser, Bayne, Noah Huling and Kael Williams had the Ooltewah hits and Huling’s went for a double.
Isaac Hughes started and took the loss, throwing four innings and giving up five hits and four runs while striking out three and walking one. Jax Howard worked an inning and was raked for three hits, six runs (three earned) and struck out two and walked two.
Linescores
Cleveland 101 261 1 – 11 9 1
Ooltewah 100 000 0 – 1 4 6
Blake and Lee; Hughes, Howard (5), Ingram (6) and Huling
Walker Valley 240 100 0 – 7 6 3
Bradley Central 424 000 x -- 10 8 3
Smith, Klepzig (3) and Calfee; Thompson, Lewis (3), Casteel (5) and Standifer
Soddy-Daisy 001 000 0 – 1 7 2
East Hamilton 400 021 x – 7 8 1
L. Maynor, Guess (7) and Travis; Pridmore, O’Rear (6), Roberts (7) and Campbell