Owensboro mounted a comeback win on the road and Apollo was able to grab a road win as well in extra innings on Wednesday.
Apollo vs Breckinridge County
After being held scoreless for the first six innings of the game, the Eagles bats came alive late to earn a 4-1 win in extra innings over Breckinridge County.
Both teams were in the midst of a pitcher’s duel going into the fifth inning and it was the Fighting Tigers who were able to crack the scoreboard first in the bottom half of the inning. With two outs in the inning and one on thanks to an Apollo error earlier in the inning, senior Cohl Proctor doubled to bring in a run and made it 1-0 heading into the sixth.
However, with their backs against the wall in the top half of the seventh, the Eagles’ game changed with one swing of the bat. With one out in the inning Sam Holder connected for his lone hit of the day, sending a line drive over the left field wall and knotting things up at 1-1.
Sophomore Noah Cook stayed hot on the mound for Apollo too, staying in for the seventh and striking out the side to send the game into extra innings. Cook pitched seven innings and allowed three hits and one run, all while striking out nine.
Proctor had thrown a dominant game for Breckinridge County as well, getting seven innings of five-hit baseball while allowing one earned run and striking out 14.
With momentum on their side back-to-back walks in the top of the eighth then had the Eagles with a dangerous scoring opportunity. The runners moved over to second and third on a sacrifice bunt, before Aiden Wells was walked to load the bases with two outs.
Two more consecutive walks—the fourth and fifth of the inning—plated two runs for the Eagles, before a sac fly from Cook ended the top of half of the inning with them up 4-1. It was there that Cayden Crabtree came in and shut down the Fighting Tigers 1-2-3, claiming the 4-1 win for Apollo.
In a game with few hits, Cook added a 2-4 day on top of his pitching performance, while Holder was responsible for the lone RBI for the Eagles with the solo shot.
The Eagles now sit at 2-0 with consecutive road wins, as they will return to Owensboro to host McLean County for their first home game of the season at noon on Saturday.
Owensboro vs. University Heights Academy
Following a tough loss to Muhlenberg County, Owensboro climbed their way back from a 6-1 deficit to grab its second win of the season at 10-6 over University Heights Academy.
While the Red Devils were able to get on the board in the top half of the first, it was the Blazers who took the early lead. With runners on first and second, junior Ian Tyler singled to right scoring one with another run crossing due to an Owensboro error.
UHA didn’t slow down either, quickly loading the bases with a single and consecutive walks with no outs in the bottom of the second. A walk brought one run in, but a triple from Tyler cleared the bases and gave them a 6-1 lead heading into the third.
The Red Devils responded well, loading the bases themselves after a leadoff double, a walk and a hit by pitch with no outs in the inning. Junior Connor Hallmark proceeded to double to score two and then a run came across on a dropped third strike on the ensuing at-bat to make it 6-4 Blazers.
Shortly after an RBI single from freshman Brady Benjamin made it 6-5 going into the fourth, where Owensboro continued to battle its way back to a lead.
Eighth grader Evan Hampton led off the fourth with a triple, when his brother Eli was hit during the next at bat to put runners on the corners with no outs. Freshman Blake Kimbrell singled to right during the following at-bat, knotting things up at 6-6.
The game hit a stalemate over the next three innings, as it wasn’t until the top of the seventh that the Red Devils bats came alive again. After a groundout to start the inning, freshman Will Hume walked and freshman Trevor Delacey doubled to put runners in scoring position.
Freshman Cayden Ray singled during the next at-bat to make it a 7-6 game, before Evan Hampton sent a bomb to deep left and gave Owensboro a 10-6 lead. UHA tried to get something going in the bottom half of the inning to send it to extras, but they were unable to convert with runners in scoring position and fell to the Red Devils 10-6.
Tyler recorded four RBIs for the Blazers, while Evan Hampton had three and Hallmark had two for Owensboro. Evan and Kimbrell had three hits, while Ray, Eil and Hallmark all had two apiece.
It was a rough start for Hume who gave up five earned runs, walked three and gave up five hits in one inning, but senior Jacob Mitchell came in clutch in relief. He tossed four innings, allowing seven hits, not allowing a single run and striking out three.
The win moves Owensboro to 2-1 following the three-game road trip, as they will have its first home game against Henderson County at 5:30 p.m. on Friday.
