Bolton rallies for USA Classic win

Bolton and pitcher Colton Spicer survived a speedbump in the road — three of them, actually — and made their way into the second round of the 27th USA Classic Wednesday, rallying for a 4-3 win over Lafayette Central of Indiana in Millington.

MUS and Covington weren’t so fortunate in the first day’s action at the USA Stadium complex. The Owls, who have made the semifinals of this event the past three years, spotted Central Private School an early 4-1 lead and saw their rally hopes fall a run short 4-3. The Chargers had four of their six errors in the third inning, giving CBC of St. Louis and ace Robert Plohr enough fuel for a 5-2 decision.

The Wildcats (8-5) saw a 1-0 lead evaporate in the top of the second as the Knights (1-1) scored three times, aided by three straight hit batsmen by Spicer (1-2).

“I had to just relax and start throwing again,” said Spicer, who stopped the bleeding quickly and finished with a three-hitter.

His teammates scratched their way to runs in the next three innings, including the go-ahead RBI by Tanner Odom in the fourth for a win that coach Chris Godwin said will pay dividends for his squad as it enters the minefield better known as District 15-AAA.

“Today we learned how we need to play on the field, and on the bench,” said Godwin, whose team finished sixth in this event in 2011.

MUS (9- 6) racked up 10 hits, two each by Dalton Dulin, Matt Bolton, Andrew Plunkett and Michael Fitzsimmons.

But the Owls left nine on base

The Rebels (21-3) had jumped to a 4-1 lead off Owls’ junior Blake Bennett (0-3). He hit the first two batters he faced.