Pitching depth key for ’Hawks
Posted on Friday, May 9, 2008
PEA RIDGE - If nothing else, Pea Ridge baseball coach John E. King found some pitching depth behind Travis Parsons at the Class 3 A Region 1 Tournament.
Not a bad quality to have this time of year.
The Blackhawks (16-6 ) put behind them Monday night's painful loss to Shiloh Christian with a one-sided rout of Lamar on Tuesday to finish third at the regional.
They hope the momentum follows them to Searcy tonight for a first-round game at the Class 3 A State Baseball Tournament.
Pea Ridge plays at 7: 30 p.m. against the Marmaduke Greyhounds, runners-up from Region 3. Eight games are scheduled for two fields at Harding University today. The tournament continues there through the semifinals Monday.
The championship game is 12: 30 p. m., Saturday, May 17, at Baum Stadium in Fayetteville.
All-Conference senior Dustin Woodward showed King he can give depth to the pitching staff if Pea Ridge can advance.
Woodward, a versatile outfielder and infielder, had the grand sum of 8 innings pitched out of the bullpen this season but made his first varsity pitching start in the regional semifinal against Shiloh Christian.
He carried a shutout and a 3-0 lead into the seventh before the Saints rallied for a 4-3 win.
"At least it wasn't to get in (the state tournament )," King says. "But it still wasn't any fun. For six innings everything looked really good."
In the consolation game, though, Pea Ridge showed no ill effects. The Blackhawks led 9-0 after three innings and needed just five innings to finish off a 16-0 win against Lamar. Senior right-hander Drew Rosser had a no-hitter until giving up a single with two outs in the fifth. King loved the team's resiliency. That and Parsons on the mound should serve the 'Hawks well tonight.
Parsons, a senior left-hander, has put together a very good season on the mound. He carries a 7-0 record into tonight's start and was dominant in Saturday's first-round regional victory against Lavaca. He pitched a one-hitter with 15 strikeouts in an 8-1 win.
Marmaduke advanced to its regional championship game for the first time since 1989. They led Corning 7-0 early but lost 8-7 in eight innings Tuesday.
King remembers those Greyhounds of 19 years ago. He coached the Blackhawks to a 9-5 win against them in the semifinals of the Class A State Tournament.
Pea Ridge went on to beat Bergman 11-1 in the championship for its first and only state title. The Blackhawks were close to playing for another a year ago but lost in extra innings to eventual champion Horatio in the semifinals.
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