Mounties split with Rebels
Posted on Wednesday, March 26, 2008
ROGERS - Fort Smith Southside pitcher John Koch gave the Rogers Mounties a narrow window to work with here Tuesday night in the first game of a 7 A-West Conference doubleheader at Northwest Park.
Each time the Mounties threatened, Koch boarded it shut and the Rebels prevailed 9-0.
Rogers catcher Jared Hall swatted a grand slam in Game 2 and the Mounties (5-4, 2-2 ) rebounded for a wild 9-7 victory against Southside (6-4, 3-1 ) to salvage the split.
Rogers had runners in scoring position from the second inning through the fifth innings and again in the seventh in Game 1. But each time, Koch went on a strikeout tear, finishing with nine.
The Mounties left eight runners on base, seven in scoring position.
"Against a good pitcher, you're only going to have a few opportunities, if any," Rogers coach Dr. Tom Woodruff said. "If you have one, you have to make something happen."
The right-hander, who worked all seven innings and walked just one, gave up singles to Seth White and Grant Wise to lead off the fourth. He then fanned the next three batters.
"I was disappointed," Woodruff said.
Thomas Biocic and David Edwards highlighted a seven-run Southside fifth inning. Biocic lined a two-run home run to right field. Edwards had a bases-loaded, threerun double against relief pitcher Harrison Stanfill's first pitch.
Losing pitcher McKenzie Mathews left after facing all nine batters in the fifth inning. Rogers trailed 6-0. He surrendered eight hits, walked three and hit three.
Rogers, which banged six home runs in a 3-game trip to Texas last week, scattered eight singles. Wise went 3-for-3 while Andy Couture singled twice. Game 2 Mounties 9, Rebels 7 Spanky Purdy delivered the winning hit in the fourth inning, a sacfly to right field that scored Wise and lifted the Mounties to an 8-7 lead. Stanfill, who picked the victory in relief, then scored Mathews with a single.
"We battled," Woodruff said. "It was one of those games you felt like whoever batted last was going to win."
Rogers scored five in the third but the Rebs wasted no time recapturing the lead. Edwards and Young doubled home two of four runs Southside scored in the fourth inning for a 7-5 lead.
Hall's grand slam home run gave the Mounties their first lead of the day, 4-3 in the third inning. Hall ripped into losing pitcher Cameron Young's first pitch and tattooed the blue building in left field.
"Jared's capable of doing that," Woodruff said. "That got us ahead."
Couture was on base with a leadoff double to the fence, the Mounties' first extra base hit of the day. Wise and Mathews were on with walks.
Purdy followed up Hall's home run with a double and scored from second on an infield single by Stanfill that was combined with a throwing error at short to first for a 5-3 lead.
Southside roughed up Mounties' freshman pitcher Zac Stewart in the first inning, tagging him for four straight singles and a 3-0 lead.
Stewart, who pitched well in Texas, went 3 2 / 3 innings, giving up 9 hits.
"Stanfill pitched real well tonight," Woodruff said.
Mounties' leadoff batter and center fielder Scott Hatcher was not able to play the game after taking a hard pitch to the head. The ball grazed his face and drew blood. Young also beaned Mathews and Austin Reid in the second inning. Couture was hit in the fourth.
Rogers opens play 5: 30 p.m. Friday against Central Arkansas Christian at a weekend tournament in Harrison.
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