After back-to-back mercy rule wins in their All “A” Classic Baseball Statewide Tournament run, Owensboro Catholic was unable to find the clutch hits they needed in the Championship against Lyon County, falling 3-2.
Trailing 3-1 entering the top of the seventh, the Aces found themselves down to their final out with a runner on first. Chris Burns hit a grounder to shortstop that seemed like the final out, but instead the throw was high and Burns barreled into the first baseman.
As the ball rolled into rightfield, Jake Murphy scurried around the bases and scored from first, with Burns advanced to third, cutting the lead to 3-2. With a chance to tie it, Jaxson White, who had homered earlier in the game, laced the ball into right field, but as had been the case all game – Lyon County made the flashy defensive play to end the threat.
“It was a good game to watch. We started with runners on second and third two innings in a row with no outs, and they got out of it both times,” Owensboro Catholic head coach Jody Hamilton said. “We pressed our luck a little to much in the third, and they ended up scoring runs, but it was a good game. We hit the ball as hard as we could hit it, just right at people. There is not much you can do about it. Sometimes they fall, and sometimes they get caught.”
White broke the scoreless tie in the top of the third with a solo shot, but Lyon County responded in the bottom of the inning to score three runs. Lane Hundley started on the mound, allowing three earned runs over three innings, before Barrett Evans relieved him – shutting the door and throwing three shutout innings.
Earlier in the day, the Aces beat Raceland 11-1, capped off by a monster grand slam by Evans in the bottom of the sixth to enforce the mercy rule and send his team to the championship. Luke Quinn threw a complete game on the mound, giving up one unearned run over six innings, striking out three.
“Barrett has been swinging it and hopefully he can continue to,” Hamilton said after the Raceland game. “He takes what he is given, tries to play the count, and goes from there.”
Despite the disappointing ending, the Aces are starting to find their stride, having won four of their last six. They return to action Tuesday evening when they host Muhlenberg County at 5:30 pm.
