Crawfordsville Athenians | Archive | May, 2008

The Paper photo by Lori Poteet Crawfordsville High School seniors Mitchell Ray, Justin Wright, Cameron Hobson, Cody Dowell, Blake Harris, Andrew Swart and Jason Spurlock celebrate the Class 3A No. 5 Athenians’ IHSAA Crawfordsville Sectional title Thursday night. The Paper photo by Lori Poteet Crawfordsville High School senior Mitchell Ray went 2-for-3 and had three RBI Thursday.

Baseball Thursday IHSAA Crawfordsville Sectional At Crawfordsville HS Championship game Crawfordsville 11, Western Boone 0 Western Boone 000 00 – 0 1 3 Crawfordsville 304 4X – 11 7 0 WP: Cameron Hobson C (7-2). LP: Jared Knox WB. Crawfordsville runs scored: Brett Linn 2, Brett McKinney 2, Cameron Hobson 2, Cody Dowell 2, Scott Hunt 2, Mitchell Ray Crawfordsville RBI: Mitchell Ray 3, Scott Hunt 2, Mitchell Ray, Blake Harris, Justin Wright, Cameron Hobson Western Boone hits: Jared Knox Crawfordsville hits: Mitchell Ray 2, Scott Hunt 2, Justin Wright, Brett Linn, Cameron Hobson 2B: Jared Knox WB Stolen bases: Western Boone 0, Crawfordsville 5 (Brett Linn 2, Brett McKinney, Cameron Hobson, Cody Dowell) LOB: Western Boone 1, Crawfordsville 3 Records: Crawfor

Reprinted Courtesy of:
Paper of Montgomery County
thepaper24-7.com

By John
Groth
Sports
Editor

No
matter what Mitchell Ray stayed relaxed Thursday night.

Bumped up a spot
in the batting order, the Crawfordsville High School senior catcher didn’t put
any extra added pressure on himself.

He stayed calm – behind the plate,
at the plate and even after the Athenians’ third-straight Indiana High School
Athletic Association sectional championship celebration.

He’s a
sectional title game veteran – being a member of all three sectional
title-winning teams – and he knows there’s still more to come.

Ray had
two hits and three RBI, while junior Scott Hunt added two hits and two RBI as
Class 3A No. 5 Crawfordsville cruised to an 11-0 five-inning IHSAA
Crawfordsville Sectional championship game win over Sagamore Athletic Conference
rival Western Boone.

“The team did an awesome job getting on base for me
to get the RBIs,” said Ray, who had a two-RBI single and an RBI flyout. “It’s an
awesome experience. It’s not easy winning three-straight sectionals. But we’re
not satisfied.”

Crawfordsville (28-4) advances to play in Tuesday’s IHSAA
Crawfordsville Regional, where the Athenians will face the Brebeuf
Jesuit/Roncalli winner of the Brebeuf Jesuit Sectional. Brebeuf Jesuit and
Roncalli play at 6 p.m. today.

Crawfordsville won its third-straight
IHSAA sectional title and its fourth in the past decade.

The Athenians
also captured baseball and softball sectional championships for the first time
since 2002 – when the baseball team won the Class 3A Westfield Sectional and the
softball team won the Class 2A Hamilton Heights Sectional.

But this
year, they accomplished another postseason milestone – for the first time in
coach John Froedge’s career they shut out all three sectional opponents on their
way to the title.

Crawfordsville no-hit conference rival Danville in a
6-0 win Monday, then threw a combined four-hitter 5-0 shut out of Lebanon on
Tuesday before senior Cameron Hobson (three innings pitched, five strikeouts)
and sophomore Steven Rice (two innings pitched, four strikeouts) combined for a
one-hitter Thursday night.

Crawfordsville has recorded 12 shutouts in 32
games this season.

“The best part about it is that we get to move on,”
Froedge said. “We also got another shutout. If we hold people scoreless, we
always have a chance. We get to play again. I’m excited about that and having
another home game is a plus, too.”

Despite facing Western Boone’s (5-18)
slow left-handed pitcher Jared Knox, Froedge moved Ray up a spot-from sixth to
fifth – in the batting order.

And Ray responded with two hits and a
team-high three RBI.

He hit a two-RBI single in the first inning, on a
hard, high-bouncing ground ball which caromed off Stars’ senior second baseman
Tyler Haney’s knees and went into the outfield after he tried to stop the ball
on a dive.

Then Ray added an RBI flyout in the bottom of the third
inning and a single in the bottom of the fourth.

Froedge also moved Hunt
into the starting line-up as the designated hitter Thursday night – and the
switch also paid dividends.

After hitting a single as a pinch-hitter in
Tuesday’s sectional semifinal win over conference foe Lebanon, he kept his hot
bat going.

Hunt went 2-for-3, recording an RBI groundout in the bottom
of the first, then adding RBI singles in the bottom of the third and fourth
innings.

He also scored the Athenians’ final run off an error and
finished with two total runs scored.

Hunt acknowledged he had some
motivation – he wanted to stay in the line-up for the Crawfordsville
Regional.

Crawfordsville players worked on hitting to opposite field in
practice, so Hunt focused more on keeping his weight on his back hip and staying
back. His concentration paid off.

“Our team is so good, you want to stay
hot and keep your bat in there,” Hunt said. “Once you get rolling, you can’t
stop. We worked on driving the ball to the opposite field in practice. The whole
line-up is rolling and we need to stay hot like that.”

The Paper photo by Lori Poteet Crawfordsville High School baseball players celebrate as Cameron Hobson hits the first of his two home runs in Monday’s IHSAA Crawfordsville Sectional first-round game.

Baseball Monday IHSAA Crawfordsville Sectional At Crawfordsville HS First round Game 2 Crawfordsville 6, Danville 0 Crawfordsville 011 103 0 – 6 11 1 Danville 000 000 0 – 0 0 3 WP: Cameron Hobson C (6-2). LP: Ryan Smith D. Crawfordsville runs scored: Cameron Hobson 2, Brett McKinney 2, Mitchell Ray, Brett Linn Crawfordsville RBI: Cameron Hobson 5, Justin Wright Crawfordsville hits: Cameron Hobson 3, Mitchell Ray 2, Justin Wright 2, Cody Dowell 2, Brett Linn, Blake Harris HR: Cameron Hobson C 2 2B: Justin Wright C Stolen bases: Crawfordsville 1 (Mitchell Ray), Danville 0 LOB: Crawfordsville 9, Danville 2 Records: Crawfordsville 26-4, Danville 16-12

Reprinted Courtesy Of:
Paper Of Montgomery County
www.thepaper24-7.com

By John
Groth
Sports
Editor

Cameron
Hobson mowed down his first Indiana High School Athletic Association sectional
opponent.

He didn’t care he was facing the team had given Crawfordsville
its first – and only – Sagamore Athletic Conference loss.

Nope, the
Crawfordsville High School senior pitcher only wanted a victory – plain and
simple.

He’s ready for more to come.

Hobson and junior J.D. Rice
combined for a no-hitter – issuing 15 strikeouts – in Class 3A No. 5
Crawfordsville’s 6-0 IHSAA Crawfordsville Sectional first-round victory over
Danville at Crawfordsville High School.

“(Revenge) was not on (my
mind),” said Hobson, who also hit two home runs, including a three-run home run
in the top of the sixth inning that gave the Athenians a 6-0 lead. “I don’t know
if it was on everyone else’s. It’s sectionals – you just want to win. I don’t
think revenge was behind it.”

Crawfordsville (26-4) advances to play
conference foe Lebanon (10-15) in today’s 5 p.m. Crawfordsville Sectional
semifinal game.

Lebanon defeated county- and conference rival North
Montgomery 6-5 in 11 innings in Monday’s opening first-round game. Southmont and
conference foe Western Boone will play in today’s 7:30 p.m. second sectional
semifinal game.

Behind a steady dose of strikeouts from its two pitchers
and Hobson’s offensive outburst, Crawfordsville won its 11th-straight game. The
Athenians have now held their last nine opponents to two or fewer runs and have
held their last 12 opponents to three or less.

Hobson dominated Danville
batters. He struck out 12 Warriors in five innings and allowed only two
base-runners – one on a walk and the other off a wild pitch – with both coming
in the bottom of the third inning.

Crawfordsville coach John Froedge
took Hobson (6-2) out after five innings, giving J.D. Rice the chance to finish
the game. Rice had no problems – striking out three batters in the final two
innings – and putting the Athenians into the sectional semifinals.

Froedge took Hobson out to save him, maybe for the championship game or
maybe to get him rest if the Athenians can advance into regionals. They’ll have
strikeout king and senior Andrew Swart throwing in today’s sectional semifinal –
and, if they win, he can choose between Swart, Hobson, J.D. Rice, sophomore
Steven Rice or senior Cody Dowell.

“Our goal is to win three (games),”
Froedge said. “Anywhere we can save innings (is a plus) . . . You want to have
as much pitching available as you can.”

With Crawfordsville up 1-0 in the
top of the third inning and Hobson leading off, he crushed a solo home run over
the scoreboard in left centerfield to give the Athenians’ a 2-0 lead.

His second, game-clinching blast came three innings later.

With
two runners on and only one out, Hobson smashed a three-run home run past the
365-foot marker in centerfield to put Crawfordsville up 6-0.

While
Hobson drove the runs in, he wouldn’t have had the opportunities if not for his
other seniors. Five of Crawfordsville’s six senior starters had hits, with four
– Mitchell Ray, Justin Wright, Dowell and Hobson – recording at least two.

Wright had the Athenians’ other RBI in the first inning on an RBI double
to centerfield.

Crawfordsville did leave nine runners on base, including
the bases loaded after three straight walks to open the first inning, which
concerned Froedge.

“We definitely should have scored more runs (in the
first inning),” he said. “We made some base-running mistakes. It’s an area of
focus we need to work on. (But) the guys are locked in. You can tell when
they’re really focused and locked in.”

The Paper photo by Lori Poteet North Montgomery High School junior Brittney Asbury went 4-for-4 and had two RBI and two runs scored.

Softball Tuesday IHSAA Southmont Sectional At Southmont HS First round Game 2 North Montgomery 9, Lebanon 5 Lebanon 103 001 0 – 5 12 2 North Montgomery 010 305 X – 9 12 6 WP: Tori Harmon NM. LP: Cassie Perras L. Lebanon runs scored: Kalyn Harker, Raylee Stewart, Ashley Holmes, Sydney Sloan, Cassie Perras North Montgomery runs scored: Alli Thompson 2, Brittany Asbury 2, Bertie Kirkpatrick, Shelby Snellenbarger, Julia Pierce, Jessica Evans, Breannah Asbury Lebanon RBI: Sydney Sloan North Montgomery RBI: Brittney Asbury 2, Bertie Kirkpatrick, Ashley Buis, Alli Thompson, Shelby Snellenbarger Lebanon hits: Raylee Stewart 3, Kalyn Harker 2, Ashley Holmes, Sydney Sloan, Kelsey Wolfe, Karson McCollum, Cassie Perras North Montgomery hits: Brittney Asbury 4, Ashley Buis 2, Alli Thompson 2, Shelby Snellenbarger, Caitlin Smith, Jessica Evans, Breannah Asbury 3B: Brittney Asbury NM 2B: Kelsey Wolfe L, Cassie Perras L, Ashley Holmes L LOB: Lebanon 7, North Montgomery 5 Records: North Montgomery 9-14, Lebanon 12-12

Reprinted Courtesy of:
Paper of Montgomery County
thepaper24-7.com

By Cale
Stephens
For
The Paper

NEW
MARKET – North Montgomery High School’s softball team overcame some major
defensive woes to earn an Indiana High School Athletic Association Southmont
Sectional win.

The Chargers belted out 12 hits and scored five runs in
the bottom of the sixth inning in a 9-5 win over Sagamore Athletic Conference
foe Lebanon.

North Montgomery (9-14) advances to play county- and
conference rival Crawfordsville (25-2) in today’s first sectional semifinal.
Athenians’ sophomore pitcher Chelsea Day threw a no-hitter in an 11-0
five-inning win against county- and conference rival Southmont.

North
Montgomery (9-14) tied the game 5-5 in the bottom half of the sixth inning when
the Chargers loaded the bases with one out. North Montgomery coach Julie
Seagraves then sent in a pinch-hitter, freshman Bertie Kirkpatrick. Kirkpatrick
walked on five pitches and drove in the winning run in her first varsity
at-bat.

“(Lebanon’s) starting pitcher had been injured. So, they were
throwing their (junior varsity) starter,” Seagraves said. “Bertie hit very well
against her in the (junior varsity) game. I figured this was the perfect
opportunity to see what she’s got.”

The Chargers capped their scoring on
junior Brittney Asbury’s two-run triple. Asbury hung the star on a great day at
the plate. She went 4-for-4, scored two runs and batted in two more.

“I
was super confident,” Asbury said. “I was trying to aim for right-center. But it
kept going to right. It worked. Before the game we knew we would be facing the
(junior varsity) pitcher. But we also knew we had to stay on it. When she
pitched it right down the middle, I was like, ‘hey! I’ll take it.'”

North
Montgomery’s two, three, and four hitters – senior Ashley Buis, junior Alli
Thompson, and Asbury – combined for eight of the Chargers’ 12 hits and four of
their nine runs.

However, the Chargers’ defense did not show up. Lebanon
(12-12) took advantage of three North Montgomery errors in the third inning to
score three runs and take a 4-1 lead.

In all, the Chargers committed six
errors.

“I was not happy with our defensive play,” Seagraves said.
“Defense has been our struggle all year. No matter what we didn’t give up and
found a way to get hits. That’s been the story all year for us. Mistakes we make
defensively, we’ll find a way to make up for it on the offensive end. If it’s a
high scoring game, it’s a high scoring game – as long as we’re on
top.”

North Montgomery advances in the sectional for the first time with
Seagraves as a coach.

“We got all of our errors out of the way,”
Seagraves said. “We were so close last time we faced (Crawfordsville). Our girls
are looking forward to it. Crawfordsville will be just as excited to play North
(Montgomery). Hopefully, we’ve gotten all of our jitters or whatever out of the
way.”

Asbury mirrored her coach’s comments.

“I’m excited,” she
said. “I’m a little more confident now that we’ve seen them. I know we can beat
them if we are all playing together and have our bats going

The Paper photo by Lori Poteet Crawfordsville High School sophomore Chelsea Day threw a five-inning no-hitter in Tuesday’s IHSAA Southmont Sectional win.

IHSAA Southmont Sectional At Southmont HS First-round Game 1 Crawfordsville 11, Southmont 0 (5 innings) Southmont 000 00 – 0 0 1 Crawfordsville 023 6X – 11 11 0 WP: Chelsea Day C (12-0). LP: Sam Green S (0-4) Crawfordsville runs scored: Stormy Staton 2, Ariel Hinton 2, Sarah Williams 2, Marissa French 2, Chelsea Day, Alex Brock, Kylie Justus Crawfordsville RBI: Elizabeth Zachary 4, Hannah Fink, Sarah Williams, Stormy Staton, Ariel Hinton, Hayley Fink Crawfordsville hits: Stormy Staton 2, Elizabeth Zachary 2, Hannah Fink 2, Hayley Fink, Marissa French, Chelsea Day, Sarah Williams, Ariel Hinton 2B: Sarah Williams C; Stormy Staton C; Ariel Hinton C Stolen bases: Southmont 0, Crawfordsville 4 (Stormy Staton, Ariel Hinton, Hayley Fink, Hannah Fink) LOB: Southmont 1, Crawfordsville 4 Records: Crawfordsville 25-2, Southmont 9-12

Reprinted Courtesy of:
Paper of Montgomery County
thepaper24-7.com

By John
Groth
Sports
Editor

NEW
MARKET – Chelsea Day went wild.

Crawfordsville High School’s sophomore
pitcher was so pumped up for the team’s Indiana High School Athletic Association
first-round sectional game.

With the adrenaline going facing county- and
Sagamore Athletic Conference rival Southmont, she launched her first pitch way
left of home plate and into the fence.

Then, she settled down and went
crazy with strikeouts.

Day pitched a no-hitter, striking out 10 batters,
and junior Elizabeth Zachary added four RBI in Class 3A No. 5 Crawfordsville’s
11-0 five-inning win over Southmont in Tuesday’s IHSAA Southmont Sectional
first-round game.

“At the beginning I was (nervous). But after I started
to feel amazing through it,” said Day, who has struck out 20 Southmont batters
in her two starts against them this season. “I love pitching and it’s in
sectionals . . . the flow of it just helps.”

Crawfordsville (25-2)
advances to today’s sectional semifinals, where they Athenians will play county-
and conference rival North Montgomery. North Montgomery (9-4) defeated Lebanon
9-5 in Tuesday’s other first-round game.

Crawfordsville broke the
school’s single-season wins record and advanced to the semifinals for the first
time since 2006.

Day was dominant. She allowed only one base-runner –
walking Mounties’ junior Cayla Porter, the opening batter of the
game.

Day struck out one batter at least every inning and struck out the
side in the top of the second. She sent eight of the 10 Southmont (9-12) batters
down swinging.

“Chelsea was pumped,” Crawfordsville coach Brian Norris
said. “You saw it after the first batter. That’s what we needed from her. She
was ahead of hitters all day.”

Crawfordsville gave Day some run support
in the bottom of the second – scoring two runs. Zachary hit an RBI single and
sophomore Ariel Hinton scored off a passed ball.

They added three more
in the bottom of the third and erupted for six runs in the bottom of the fourth.

Zachary had an RBI sacrifice fly in the third and then added a two-RBI
single in the fourth.

Senior Sarah Williams, junior Stormy Staton and
Hinton each had RBI doubles in the inning to give the Athenians an 11-0
lead.

Day struck out the two of the final three batters she faced, with
freshman Crystal Flowers grounding out to Staton at first base to end the game.

“After pitching against (Southmont) one time before, I knew how to pitch
them,” Day said. “I pitched them up and outside.”

Southmont coach Curt
Brown acknowledged Day pitched a great game.

“(Chelsea) just throws
well,” he said. “She looked like she was throwing harder to the day when we
faced her two weeks ago.”

Southmont ended its season on a six-game losing
streak, with the last four losses coming without sophomore pitcher Jami Addler.

Addler injured her right knee during the team’s May 12 game against
Crawfordsville and didn’t pitch again.

But Brown wasn’t worried and said
she’ll back next season.

Senior Sam Green (0-4) took the loss, recording
one strikeout while only issuing two walks.

Brown was proud of the way
she pitched and how the Mounties’ young team, which included eight
underclassmen, came together this year.

“It was really fun year for the
coaching staff,” he said. “You couldn’t ask for a better team for a first-year
coach.”

Southmont graduates three seniors – Casey Stull, Anisha Gillogly
and Green – but returns the core of its youthful team.

Brown already has
summer plans to help the younger players get more experience.

He’s
forming a Southmont Summer League team in June to compete against other
conference teams on Tuesdays and Thursdays this summer.

The team will
include current players, along with five or six incoming freshmen, to help get
them more acclimated to high school level softball.

He’s also excited
about Southmont Junior High club softball starting next year.

“We’re
building a program,” Brown said. “These seniors had to go through three coaching
staffs in four years. There hasn’t been a lot of coaching stability here. That’s
going to change.”

The Paper photo by Lori Poteet Crawfordsville High School sophomore Steven Rice struck out nine batters in five innings in the Class 3A No. 6 Athenians’ win. The Paper photo by Lori Poteet Crawfordsville High School junior Quinten Anderson steals a base as Southmont High School’s Brayden McKinney tries to make a tag.

Baseball Wednesday At Crawfordsville Crawfordsville 10, Southmont 1 Southmont 000 010 0 – 1 4 1 Crawfordsville 002 026 X – 10 9 3 WP: Steven Rice C. LP: Lucas Miller S. Southmont runs scored: Derek Linn Crawfordsville runs scored: Cody Dowell 2, Cameron Hobson 2, Steven Rice, Justin Wright, Quinten Anderson, Brett McKinney, Blake Harris, Mitchell Ray Southmont RBI: Lucas Long Crawfordsville RBI: Cameron Hobson 4, Steven Rice 2, Mitchell Ray 2, J.D. Rice Southmont hits: Brayden McKinney, Derek Linn, Lucas Long, Jared Earle Crawfordsville hits: Mitchell Ray 2, Brett McKinney, Cody Dowell, Scott Hunt, Quinten Anderson, Steven Rice, Cameron Hobson, J.D. Rice HR: Cameron Hobson C 3B: Mitchell Ray C Stolen bases: Southmont 1 (Scott Paris), Crawfordsville 2 (Quinten Anderson, Cody Dowell) LOB: Southmont 6, Crawfordsville 6 Records: Crawfordsville 20-4 (10-1 SAC), Southmont 11-10 (5-6 SAC)

Reprinted Courtesy of:
Paper Of Montgomery County
www.thepaper24-7.com

By John
Groth
Sports
Editor

Cousins
Steven and J.D. Rice got to relive their glory days.

Before Wednesday
afternoon, the two Crawfordsville High School pitchers hadn’t thrown in the same
game since middle school.

They put that five-year drought to rest – along
with the bats of their county- and Sagamore Athletic Conference
rival.

Senior Cameron Hobson continued his torrid hitting pace, blasting
a grand slam, and the Rice’s combined for 12 strikeouts in Class 3A No. 6
Crawfordsville’s 10-1 victory over county- and conference rival Southmont at
Baldwin Field.

Steven, a sophomore, earned the win – and J.D., a junior,
closed out the game.

“It’s pretty sweet,” J.D. Rice said. “Cousins out
there throwing made it fun.”

Crawfordsville (20-4, 10-1 SAC) won its
second county- and conference game in two days and fifth-consecutive overall.
The Athenians will go for a clean sweep at 7 p.m. today against county- and
conference foe North Montgomery.

But this game belonged to the two
pitchers.

Steven Rice (4-0) kept Southmont hitters off balance and sent
plenty down swinging. He struck out nine batters in five innings, including
striking out the side in the second inning. But his most important play came on
the defensive end.

With Crawfordsville leading 2-1 in the top of the
fifth inning, the Mounties had runners on first and third base with two outs.

They had just scored their lone run, on sophomore Lucas Long’s RBI
single, and had Tanner Hill up to bat.

Hill hit a ground ball near first
base, making Hobson race up from first base to come get the ball.

As
Hobson fielded the ball, Steven Rice ran behind him and towards first base.
Hobson turned and flipped the ball to Rice – who dove (although he admitted he
tripped) and still managed to slide his glove across first base before Hill
stepped on the bag.

“I tried to make it look graceful,” Rice said.
“That’s one of the plays we’ve been working on as a team. That’s been one of my
main problems all year – I haven’t been able to get to first base all
year.”

Steven Rice added a two-RBI single in the top of the fifth inning,
pushing Crawfordsville’s lead to 4-1 before Hobson turned the game into a rout.

With the bases loaded, Hobson crushed a grand-slam to right field,
giving the Athenians an 8-1 lead.

It’s Hobson’s fourth home run this
season and second in his last three games. He hit a walkoff home run in the
bottom of the eighth inning last Saturday’s Athenian Invitational championship
game, giving Crawfordsville a 3-2 win over Park Tudor.

J.D. Rice relieved
Steven in the sixth inning. He allowed only one hit, and just like his cousin,
struck out the side in one inning – the top of the seventh. After

“Coach
Welliever just said ‘let it go, let it loose,'” he said.

Froedge planned
to have both Rice’s pitch in the game – even admitting that Steven went a little
further than he expected. But there’s not anything wrong with that.

“I
wanted to get Steven Rice the start,” he said. “He’s 100 percent now. I wanted
to push him a little bit. You never know when we might need him to come in and
have a start in the postseason. J.D. just needs to get more
innings.”

Southmont coach Adam Acton only wishes he had enough extra
pitchers.

Southmont has to play four conference games this week and with
Acton forced to play musical pitchers for the second-straight game, the Mounties
weren’t able to find a groove.

Acton used four pitchers – Lucas Miller
and sophomores Trevor Woodcock, Logan Petry and Tanner Hill – during Wednesday’s
game.

All four struggled with their control, as they combined for eight
walks and five hit batsmen.

Miller started and walked three in 2 2/3
innings pitched. Woodcock hit two batters in his 1 1/3 innings pitched. Petry
walked three and hit a batter in 1 1/3 innings pitched and Tanner Hill walked
two and hit a batter in his one inning.

“We had some tired arms,” Acton
said. “Our pitching is not deep and it caught up with us. I can tell when a
pitcher loses his stuff. All four pitchers pitched (Tuesday) night at least a
little bit. I knew they did not have a lot of gas. When they ran out of steam,
that’s when they came out.”

Acton better hope they still have some fire
left, as Southmont plays at 6 p.m. today at conference rival Lebanon.

The Paper photo by Lori Poteet Crawfordsville High School senior Mitchell Ray (left) gets back to first base before the throw to Southmont High School junior Jordon Hockersmith (right).

Baseball Thursday At Southmont Crawfordsville 9, Southmont 3 Crawfordsville 110 032 2 – 9 9 0 Southmont 000 021 0 – 3 6 4 WP: Andrew Swart C (8-0). LP: Jared Earle S (3-3) Crawfordsville runs scored: Brett Linn 2, Cody Dowell 2, Brett McKinney, Cameron Hobson Jason Spurlock, Blake Harris, Justin Wright Southmont runs scored: Trevor Woodcock, Logan Petry, Scott Paris Crawfordsville RBI: Cameron Hobson 3, Scott Hunt 2, Mitchell Ray, J.D. Rice Southmont RBI: Cody Jacquez, Logan Petry, Jordon Hockersmith Crawfordsville hits: Brett Linn 3, Mitchell Ray 2, Brett McKinney, Cameron Hobson, Justin Wright, Steven Rice Southmont hits: Jared Earle 2, Cody Jacquez, Logan Petry, Scott Paris, Jordan Hockersmith HR: Logan Petry S 2B: Cameron Hobson C, Jared Earle S, Cody Jacquez S Stolen bases: Crawfordsville 9 (Brett Linn 2, Jason Spurlock 2, Blake Harris 2, Brett McKinney, Cameron Hobson, Cody Dowell), Southmont 1 (Jordan Hockersmith) LOB: Crawfordsville 10, Southmont 5 Records: Crawfordsville 17-4 (8-1 SAC), Southmont 8-8 (4-4 SAC)

Reprintd coutesy of:
Paper of Montgomery County
www.thepaper24-7.com

By: Bill Rubenstein

NEW
MARKET – Jared Earle tried to stave off the Class 3A No. 6-ranked Crawfordsville
Athenians for four innings.

But as he tired, he and the Southmont High
School baseball team gave up seven runs in the last three innings and the
Athenians cruised to a 9-3 victory in a Montgomery County and Sagamore Athletic
Conference clash.

Even though Crawfordsville (16-4, 8-1 SAC) loaded the
bases in the first two innings and got two into scoring position in the third,
the Athenians could only push across a pair of runs against the Mounties (8-8,
4-4 SAC), scoring on a fielder’s choice off the bat of junior Scott Hunt and a
bases-loaded hit-by-pitch of senior Cameron Hobson.

Earle, a junior, was
able to strike out six in the first four innings to help get himself out of
trouble.

He was matched by Crawfordsville senior pitcher Andrew Swart,
who gave up only one base runner (an infield single off the bat of Earle) and
struck out seven in the first four innings.

The Athenians scored three
runs off Earle in the fifth inning on only one base hit, two walks, a wild pitch
and three stolen bases.

However, the Mounties scored two off Swart (8-0)
in the bottom of the inning, including a fly ball home run over the right field
fence off the bat of sophomore Logan Petry.

Crawfordsville added a pair
of runs in each of the last two innings, while Southmont scored a run in the
bottom of the sixth on a pair of doubles to round out the scoring.

“We
struck out way too many times,” Southmont coach Adam Acton said. “We’ve got to
start putting the bat on the ball.”

The final statistics prove him out.

The three Crawfordsville pitchers on the evening struck out 13 Mounties
(nine of them by Swart.) Earle was able to record eight strikeouts but also
walked six and hit a pair of batters.

The two teams meet again on
Thursday at Crawfordsville.

Southmont also has a county make-up game on
Friday as the Mounties have a home game against North Montgomery.