The Batesville Bats 10U squad jumped out to an Early Lead over the Rossville Hornets to win the Open Class Shamrock Classic at Grand Park in Westfield, IN this past weekend.
Trailing 1-0 in the bottom of the 1st inning the Bats’ Evan Johnson reached on a lead-off walk stole 2nd and 3rd and scored on a passed ball during Brayden Maple’s at bat. With one out, Caleb Mohr singled to right field and scored on a fielder’s choice by Cayden Drake, which proved to be the game winning RBI. Ethan Lacey walked, stole 2nd and reached 3rd on a wild pitch. Noah Weigel scored Lacey with a base hit to right, stole 2nd and scored on a Preston Blessing single up the middle to complete the 5 run inning. The Bats plated another 3 runs in inning #2 and 5 more in the bottom of the 3rd.
Landon Raver got the start on the mound for the Bats. He went three innings, allowing four hits and three runs, 0 earned, while striking out three and walking one to earn his 2nd victory for the weekend.
Caleb Mohr went 2-for-2 at the plate to lead the Bats. The squad stole 18 bases during the game as six players stole more than one. Cayden Drake led the way with four.
In the Semi-Final contest earlier on Sunday, the Bats scored 5 runs in the bottom of the 2nd to break a scoreless tie against the Indy Titans. Drake led the inning off with a walk and advanced to 2nd on a passed ball. After advancing to 3rd on a ground out Drake scored after Ethan Lacey reached on an infield error and advanced to 3rd. Noah Weigel walked and stole 2nd and then Raver knocked both runners in with a double to left center. Raver scored on a wild pitch to complete the big inning to allow the squad to coast for an 8-2 victory and earn a spot in the championship game.
Drake was solid on the mound allowing only one hit and zero runs over three innings and striking out five to earn the win. Dane Dudley came in to pitch 2 innings of relief to earn the save.
The Bats kicked off pool play on Friday night in less than ideal baseball conditions with the weather hovering around 30 degrees and high winds. In a game of mind over the matter, the youngsters showed their mettle and pounced all over the Indy Titans with a final score of 22-3. Raver earned the victory on the hill allowing only 2 hits and striking out 4. Dudley was hot at the plate going 3-3 with two triples, 3 RBI’s and scoring 3 runs.
In game two of pool play, two fantastic defensive teams put on a show for the fans with many great plays. The Bats trailed 3-2 going into the bottom of the 4th, but were able to respond and plate 4 runs to achieve the victory and earn the number one seed in pool play heading into bracket play on Sunday. Lacey singled on a 2-1 count, scoring two runs to put the Bats ahead for the game winning RBI. Rylan yeager made a tremendous catch in left field in the top half of the 5th inning to thwart a Hornets rally. Lacy led the team by going 2-2 from the plate and pitching 3 solid innings allowing only 2 hits and striking out 4 to earn the victory. Mohr pitched 2 innings in relief to secure the save.
Lacey led the team in hitting for the tournament batting .600, while Maple and Weigel each hit .500. The Bats (4-0) will be in action next weekend when they travel to Mooresville to participate in the Open Class, invitation only, Battle of the Rankings. Go Bats!!!
Courtesy of Bats Coach Paul Drake.