Baseball explodes for 12 runs to force Game 3
Lee Adams/LetsGoICC.com
MERIDIAN, MS – After dropping Game One of the Mississippi Association of Community and Junior College (MACJC) playoffs Friday to Meridian Community College, the Itawamba Community College baseball team exploded for 17 hits and 12 runs in Game Two to pick up the 12-5 win and force a decisive Game Three.
The Indians (27-19) were only able to get one hit the first time through the lineup and trailed 1-0 after three innings, but they quickly rattled off eight hits in the top of the fourth to take the lead.
Austin Carpenter (Belmont) started the hitting spree with a one out single and finished it with an RBI single with two outs. After Carpenter's first hit in the frame, Hagan Box (French Camp) and Russ Payne (Fulton) added singles that plated the innings first run.
After a sacrifice fly by Delvin Zinn (Pontotoc) that allowed Carpenter to score, the Indians got five straight RBI singles from Drake Rowton (Marion, AR), Timothy Rowe (Hernando), Tyreque Reed (Houlka), Ty Wheeler (Tupelo) and Carpenter.
When the dust settled on the top of the fourth, the Indians held an 8-1 lead over the hosting Eagles (38-10).
A solo home run by Meridian, cut the Indians lead to 8-2, but the offensive juggernaut struck again in the sixth when the Indians scored four runs to take a 10 run advantage.
Carpenter, who finished 4-for-6, got things started for the tribe once again with a lead-off single in the sixth and Dalton Hudspeth (Louisville) and Zinn followed with back-to-back run scoring singles.
After a ground out by Rowton plated Kaleb Barnes (Pontotoc), who was courtesy running for Hudspeth, Reed smashed the ball to right field that bounced over from a ground rule double that allowed Zinn to score.
The Eagles pushed across three runs over the next two innings to avoid the run-rule, but the Indians cruised to a 12-5 win to force a Game Three.
Blake Bennett (Memphis, TN) threw six and one third innings and struck out four to pick up the win to improve to 8-3.
For more information on ICC Baseball, follow ICC Athletics on Twitter (@LetsGoICC).