The Brownwood Lions matched their season-high in runs – previously set this past Saturday in a non-district win over Mineral Wells – and salvaged the finale of their three District 6-4A baseball games with the Glen Rose Tigers with a 17-3 victory Friday night at Morris Southall Field.
With the win, the Lions (5-10-1, 2-4) pulled even with Glen Rose (7-11, 2-4) and Lampasas (3-14, 2-4) for third place in the 6-4A standings at the midway point of district, as six contests remain. Brownwood currently would lose the tiebreaker to both teams, however, and the top four squads advance to the playoffs.
“This was much-needed, we needed a game like this,” said Brownwood third-year head coach Bryan Harris. “The guys could come out and play a little loose after we scored a few runs. All the credit goes to them. They got in the work the last few days. I challenged them in several different ways, our coaching staff challenged them in several different ways and the biggest thing they did is they came out focused and they stayed focused.”
After the Tigers drew even at 3 in the top of third inning, the Lions erupted for nine runs in the bottom half and tacked on five more runs in the fourth to enforce the 10-run mercy rule.
“It takes so much pressure off the defense and the pitcher when our guys will put the ball in play, run the bases they way they’re supposed to and score a lot of runs,” Harris said. “It’s fun to watch.”
On the mound, Gavin Brandstetter yielded three runs on four hits with five strikeouts and three walks in four innings. Kyle Ivy pitched the fifth and struck out two while walking one.
“Gavin did a really good job,” Harris said. “He got in trouble in the first but that really wasn’t on him. He was locating the ball where wanted to located it, they were just ready for him.”
The Lions finished with 13 hits and drew 10 walks, led by Campbell Gilmore’s three-hit, four-RBI night. Other standouts included Cole Miller with a pair of hits and three RBIs; Jakob Hataway, David Turner and Brandstetter with two hits and pair of RBIs apiece: Logan Posey with a hit and two RBIs; Case Markham with one hit; and Justin Valdez and Tristan Salinas with an RBI apiece.
Down 2-0 in the bottom of the first, the Lions pulled even thanks to a two-RBI single by Posey that scored Hataway, who singled, and Markham, who was hit by a pitch. Turner later drove home Miller, who reached on a fielder’s choice, with the go-ahead run thanks to a two-out single to left field.
After Glen Rose knotted the score in the top of the third, the first four Brownwood batters in the bottom half – Miller, Gilmore, Turner and Valdez – all walked to push the Lions back in front for good, 4-3. Salinas followed with an RBI sacrifice fly, Hataway plated two with a single, Brandstetter’s RBI single made the score 8-3, Miller doubled home a run, Campbell singled home two, and Turner’s RBI double capped the third-inning scoring.
Then, in the bottom of the fourth, Brandstetter doubled home Hataway, who walked, to push the lead to 13-3. That was followed by a two-RBI double from Miller, and a two-RBI single by Gilmore that put the final touches on the win.
The Lions are back in non-district action at 2 p.m. Saturday as they host Graham ahead of next week’s district tilts.
