Miners outlast Leopards in extras
BAUXITE – In a battle for first place in the 7-4A Conference, the Bauxite Miners and Malvern Leopards went at it Thursday night in Bauxite and those who were there got treated to extra innings. In a pitcher’s duel throughout and Bauxite down 2-1 after 11 and a half innings, Bauxite sophomore Aden Palmer, striking out four times before then, came through with the game-winning single to center for the 3-2 victory improving the Miners to 9-5 overall on the season, a perfect 5-0 in league play. The Leopards drop to 6-6, 4-1.
“On teams in the past in extra-inning games, they would get tight and start making mistakes trying to press too hard,” Bauxite Coach Michael Mattox said. “That entire ballgame we stayed loose and kept making play after play. I told them I was most impressed with that more than anything, just grinding it out.”
After Bauxite junior starting pitcher Dawson Goines gave up just an unearned run on five hits and two walks in
6.2 innings striking out 13, he was relieved by senior Jackson Regan in the seventh after his pitch count was up and Regan was unscored upon until the top of the 12th inning. Regan induced consecutive fly outs
to start the frame but walked the next man and gave up a single. Malvern’s Cole Carey singled in a run for the lead before Jackson walked the next man, but induced a ground out and a good play to get out of the inning down just one.
Regan got things going for Bauxite in the bottom of the 12th reaching on a one-out walk, as did senior catcher Junior Acosta to put runners on first and second. Senior Ethan Mathews singled to load the bases before senior Jackson Lindsey tied things up with an RBI single to left. Palmer didn’t take long to end
it jumping on the first pitch for the game-winning single.
“In a 1-run game you’re going to have a lot of failure at the plate, and we had that swinging at a lot of pitches out of the zone,” Mattox said, “but we were swinging aggressively and you can’t be mad about that.
“Aden comes up and he had like three or four strikeouts and hit the winning run in. Just a lot of good perseverance lessons and just battling through it to get a big conference win to hang on to first place with Malvern. A huge win.”
Though it was a 12-inning game, the Miners and Leopards were very efficient as it clocked in at about two and a half hours.
“We were rolling. We were
through nine in 1:55. It was a fast game,” Mattox said.
“It was virtually mistake-free baseball and the pitching performances … four pitchers between the two teams. Pitching and defense on both sides was exceptional. Their third baseman made some unbelievable plays.”
Malvern wasn’t the only team to come up with big defensive plays.
“Our catcher, give him credit, he caught 12 innings of baseball and made a big one in the 10th or 11th inning,” Mattox said. “Dawson gets done throwing and goes to first base. He picks that ball to hold them to the one run. If that ball gets by him at first, they probably score two more there.”
The Miners struck first in
the bottom of the first inning taking advantage of two twoout walks and Lindsey’s single to left field plating courtesy runner Cole Babcock for the 1-0 lead. Malvern tied things in the top of the third, scoring on an error, and not another run was scored the next eight innings.
Regan picked up the win in relief giving up one run on six hits and three walks, striking out two in 5.1 innings.
Lindsey went 3 for 5 with two RBIS, with Acosta and senior Easton Dinwiddie both going 2 for 5. Regan, Mathews and Palmer all had a hit each, with Palmer’s going for the game-winner.
Bauxite plays next
Tuesday, hosting De Queen in more conference action.