The Cougar baseball team won two of three games over the weekend to win the second annual Hot Rods Classic, played at Bowling Green Ballpark, in Bowling Green.
On Friday, the Cougars defeated the host team, the Greenwood Gators, 7-4, then on Saturday they defeated the Fort Thomas Highlands Bluebirds 6-4. In the final game, the Cougars gave up 11 unearned runs in a 13-0 loss to the Ohio County Eagles.
The Cougars and the Bluebirds, who came into the weekend ranked sixth in the state, both finished with 2-1 records, but because the Cougars beat them head-to-head, they were declared the champions.
HIGHLANDS
Cain Smith was the winner in this game, pitching all seven innings. He gave up four runs, three of them earned, on eight hits and three walks.
The Cougars scored all they would need in the first two innings against the Bluebirds’ starter and loser, Steve Grimme. With two outs in the first, Briley Napier looped a single into right field and was replaced on the bases by Jacob Conder.
Smith singled up the middle and Noah Brown walked to load the bases. Conder scored on a wild pitch to make it 1-0 before Dane Hawkins struck out to end the inning.
The Cougars then scored four times in the second inning. Kyle Davis led off with a walk and moved to second on an Andrew Haycraft single. Cadan Woodcock laid down a sacrifice bunt to move the runners up a base.
Haycraft came in to score on a ground out by Noah Bullock, leaving Haycraft at third. Damon Simon then doubled to right to bring in Haycraft to make it 2-0. Napier followed with a single to right to plate Simon to make it 3-0.
Conder replaced Napier on the bases again, and he moved to second when Smith reached on an error. Brown then singled sharply to left to bring in Conder and the Cougars had a 5-0 lead.
The Bluebirds scored an unearned run in the third inning to make it 5-1, then added two more in the fifth to make it 5-3.
The Cougars added an insurance run in the sixth inning against reliever Jake Gulley. Davis singled leading off, moved to second on a wild pitch, then went to third on a passed ball. Haycraft walked before Bullock hit a ground ball to third. Davis took off on the play and the throw to the plate beat him by at least 10 feet, but Davis was called safe at the plate when catcher Trent Johnson failed to apply the tag.
A leadoff double and a one-out single plated another Bluebird run in the seventh inning, but Smith retired the next two batters to end the game.
OHIO COUNTY
The Eagles sent 15 batters to the plate in the third inning and scored 11 runs, all of them unearned as the Cougars committed four errors in the inning. That was all the Eagles needed as starter and winner Tanner Batts allowed just two Cougar hits.
The Eagles added single runs in the fourth and fifth before Batts retired the Cougars in order in the bottom of the fifth to complete a run-rule win.
By Don Brown, Local Sports
Reach Don at donbrown@k105.com
