Trailing 8-4 in the bottom of the fifth inning Tuesday, the Bradwell Tigers rallied to make sure their seniors notched a win in their final home game.
Trading the pop-ups for grounders, the boys added 14 runs in the fifth and sixth to beat Groves, 18-11, in a Region 3-AAAAA matchup.
“It was nice to have senior day end up with a win,” Tiger coach Rhett Hellgren said.
He voiced displeasure with early inning pop-ups that left five Tiger runners on base in the second and third innings.
The Tigers trailed 2-1 off a Rebel solo homer in the first and a run in the third.
Senior Tiger Mitch Rogers was solid on the mound, but in the top of the fourth inning, Groves went on a hitting spree, and Rogers walked five batters. Adam Corwin came in to relieve Rogers. The Rebels closed the inning up, 8-1. During the bottom half, BI added three runs off a bunt, sacrifice fly and Matt Brown’s low line drive.
In the top of the fifth, Corwin was relieved by Kyle Lannom, but not before Corwin picked up a bunt and help convert a double play at first and third. Lannom struck out the next batter to close the inning.
That defensive momentum found its way to the Tigers’ bats and in the bottom of the fifth the Tigers went to work.
The Tigers connected and got on base to score a run. Jacob Dill hit a two-run double, Sage Sammons got another RBI and Brown added an RBI, to give BI a 10-8 lead. Groves swapped pitchers, and the reliever walked Lannom and Corwin to load the bases. Groves walked DaBrent Nobles giving the Tigers a run.
Xavier John nailed a double for two more runs and the Tigers closed the inning up 13-8.
Groves answered in the sixth with a three-run homer to make it a two-run game.
Dill followed suit with a Tiger solo home run. Sammons hit a double and later scored off a wild pitch. Lannom got on first base, stole second and Corwin walked.John smacked a double, scoring two, and Rogers got an RBI for the final run.
“The boys finally did what we have been trying to do all season – put the ball in play,” Hellgren said. “The seniors have come a long way since they entered their freshman year. I think they will succeed in anything they try to do. I wish them the best of luck. It was especially nice to see Jacob hit a homerun for his last game at Bradwell.”
Lannom got the win on the mound.
“It was nice to see Kyle get the win because he has been on the short end of the stick this season,” Hellgren said. “He is just a freshman, and he has been a huge contributor all season.”
The Tigers are 16-9 overall and 13-4 in Region 3-AAAAA. They have one more game in the regular season against Benedictine at 4:30 p.m. Friday in Savannah. The Tigers maintain fourth place in the region with Jenkins in first, Camden second and Benedictine third.