The Cougar baseball team had a busy weekend, playing three games. On Friday, they extended their win streak to seven games with a 5-1 win at Hart County.
Then, on Saturday morning, they saw their win streak snapped as Meade County prevailed 10-4. Later that afternoon Owensboro pounded out 12 hits in a 15-5 blowout.
HART COUNTY
Sophomore Mason Miller started this game and gave up an unearned run in the first inning. In the second, Miller threw eight straight balls in walking the first two batters and head coach Danny Clark had seen enough, replacing Miller on the mound with senior Noah Bullock.
Bullock struck out the next two batters, then picked off the runner at second base to get out of the inning. Bullock then proceeded to shut out the Raiders the rest of the way, giving up no runs on two hits over six innings of work.
The Cougars, meanwhile, took the lead for good with a pair of runs in the third inning. Bullock led off with a single to right was sacrificed to second and came home on Cain Smith’s monumental, two-out home run to left field.
Grayson County added a run in the fifth inning. Ryan Johnson walked leading off the inning, and moved to third on Bullock’s second hit of the game, a single to right. Bullock stole second base, but on the play, Johnson was thrown out at third. Damon Simon then plated Bullock with a single to left to make it 3-1.
The Cougars scored two unearned runs in the fifth to make it 5-1. With one out, Dane Hawkins beat out an infield single, and moved to second on a single by Andrew Haycraft. Gavin Childress grounded out to first for the second out, but both runners advanced a base.
Both runners then scored when Kyle Davis’ ground ball was booted by third baseman Clay Goodman.
MEADE COUNTY
The Cougars took an early 2-0 lead on Cain Smtih’s first-inning double.
Meade scored an unearned run in the third to make it 2-1. Reece McElfresh reached on an error, was sacrificed to second, then scored on the second error of the inning to make it 2-1.
Meade then took command of the game by scoring five times in the fourth inning to make it 6-2. Back-to-back doubles produced one run. Meade then put down three straight bunts that went for hits producing the second run. A wild pitch produced two more runs before the fifth run scored on a sacrifice fly.
The Green Wave made it 7-2 in the fifth on right-fielder Nate Wilson’s two-out, solo home run to left field.
The Cougars added a run in the bottom of the fifth to make it 7-3. Simon walked with one out and moved to third on a double down the line in left by Briley Napier. Simon then came home on a ground out by Smith.
Meade had four hits in the sixth inning, including back-to-back doubles, that produced three runs to make it 10-3.
A walk to Bullock and an infield single by Simon put runners at first and second for the Cougars in the seventh inning. Napier then ripped a ball at third that was speared by third-baseman Justin Hiner, who threw to first to double up Simon. Smith then reached on an error as Bullock came in to score, making it 10-4.
Hawkins reached on an error, putting runners at first and second, but Haycraft grounded out to end the game.
OWENSBORO
The Red Devils took an early lead against Smith on catcher Nick Belcher’s two-out, two-run home run in the first inning.
The Cougars took the lead with three runs in the second inning. Smith led off with a single, then stole second base. Hawkins reached on an error that allowed Smith to score and Hawkins to move to second.
Haycraft singled to left, but Hawkins was unable to advance. Childress laid down a bunt and everyone was safe when the attempted put out at third was missed.. That loaded the bases for Davis, who drove in the second run with a grounder to short that forced Childress at second.
Johnson popped up for the second out, but Bullock’s single to left plated Haycraft with the third run.
The Red Devils went in front to stay with three runs in the top of the third. Third-baseman Weston Hayden drove in two runs with a one-out single.
The Cougars added a run in the third inning to make it 5-4. Back-to-back one-out singles by Smith and Hawkins put runners at first and second. Smith moved to third on a force out at second by Haycraft, then Smith scored on a single to left by Childress.
The Red Devils scored once in the fourth inning to make it 6-4, then put the game out of reach by sending 11 men to the plate and scoring six times in the fifth inning to make it 12-4.
The Cougars scored an unearned run in the fifth to make it 12-5. Napier doubled leading off the inning, moved to third on a ground out, then scored on a two-out error.
Braxton French’s two-run home run in the sixth made it 14-5, and the Red Devils scored once in the seventh for the final 15-5 score.
By Don Brown, Local Sports
Reach Don at donbrown@k105.com
