Rangers Pull Within One Game of the Reds in Dixie Youth Action

By Lonnie Turner

The James Lockemy Justice Rangers moved to within a game of the Major League leading Dillon Meat Center Reds Monday evening with a nail-biting 3-2 showdown win over the Reds at Lecholop/Kiwanis Park.

Kolby Watts held the Reds to three hits in four innings and Kobe King pitched the final two innings to earn the save for Watts. Reds hurler Hunter Pittman suffered his first loss in four decisions, even though he struck out eleven to take over the strikeout lead from Jackson Hayes of the Internal Medicine Hurricanes, who was idle on Monday. The Rangers scored first when leadoff batter Cooper Schilsky reached base on an error and scored on John Rourke’s league leading eighth hit of the season. Jared Ivey led off the top of the second inning for the Reds and worked Watts for a base on balls. On an attempted stolen base, he scored all the way from second when the throw by the Reds catcher went into the outfield to give the Rangers a 2-1 lead. Schilsky led off the Ranger’s fourth with an infield hit and went to second on a sacrifice bunt by Tristian Brigman. After going to third on a wild pitch, he scored an insurance run when Richard Alderman reached base on an error. In the Reds half of the next inning, Malachi Bember hit a double, went to third on a sacrifice bunt by Connor Hyatt and scored when Noah Henderson hit into a fielder’s choice to pull to within a run of the Rangers, 3-2. The Reds threat ended with the tying and go-ahead runners on base. In the top of the sixth, the Reds threatened again to tie when Ivey reached first on an error and went all the way to third on another throwing error with one out. After the next batter struck out for the second out, Bember was issued an intentional base on balls. In an attempt to tie, Ivey was thrown out at the plate to end the game. For the Rangers, Jackson Stone belted a triple and Henderson had two hits to lead the Reds. Also hitting safely for the Reds were Collin Hamilton and Micah Garcia.

In Monday’s 12-0 shutout win in the Minor League by the Physicians Healthcare Pirates over the Burger King Braves, Josh Brown and Quamez Graves were credited with in the park home runs to highlight an eleven run total over a two-inning span. One runner was on base when Graves hit his in the second inning and Brown was the ninth batter in the third with two on and the last batter is allowed to run until there is no further play. Graves added a double and walked in two other at-bats. “Cadillac” Hunt also singled. Gage Hunt doubled and Cooper Lane singled to account for the hits for the Braves.

In Tuesday’s second of two Minor League games, the Pepsi Blue Jays fell from the ranks of the unbeaten loosing to the Burger King Braves, 7-5. Braves starting and winning pitcher Cooper Lane was breezing along with a three-hitter and leading 3-1 until his team scored four runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to take a commanding 7-1 lead. Lane got the first batter in the sixth for his tenth strike out of the game, but gave up an infield hit to Bo-Bo McKinnon and after walking Nigel George, Caleb Boykin drove McKinnon home with a single. Kris Hunt followed with a double scoring George and Charlie Nash Collins hit up the middle. The rally came up just two runs shy of tying the game when Collins was thrown out at third and Lane registered his twelfth strike out to end the game. For the Braves, Lane doubled in the first inning after Ty Huggins led off the game with a base hit to take an early 2-0 lead and added a third when Jaquan Smiling was hit by a pitch and scored on a throwing error. The only other hit was a double by Gage Hunt in the four-run fifth inning for the Braves. Pepsi out-hit the Braves, 7-3, in a losing cause with McKinnon and Kris Hunt each going 2 for 3. Riley Brigman also had a hit for the league leading Blue Jays (6-1) They will play the second place McLeod Health Marlins (5-2) on Thursday for the first half championship.

In the first game Tuesday, The Marlins got three hits from Kwinton Hunt, including a single to open the bottom of the first inning against the True Value Tigers. He went on to score when Avery Hewitt was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded later in the inning. Before the inning ended another run scored on a bases loaded walk to Austin Coward. Back to back hits by Knox Jackson (double) and D-Mac Wilson (single) and three consecutive walks led to two more runs in the third inning. Masen Furr and Dylan Windham had hits for the Tigers.

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