The Liberty Eagles lacked three of their key players and leaders on the team thanks to a senior trip, but still pulled out a 10-6 win over the Willow Springs Bears Thursday night.
“We had a rough week last week and got beat by Salem, Thayer, and East Carter, so we needed this win,” said Eagles head Coach Allen Hedden. “Coming over without our seniors magnified this game. I’m so proud of the boys stepping up and getting a win. They deserve it.”
Liberty put together two crooked innings in the fifth and the sixth after already plating two runs in previous frames. The Eagles neared double digits in the hit column with 8 on the night, and showed patience at the plate with seven base runners via walk.
The Bears benefitted from a two RBI single from Dakota McDaniel in the second. In the fifth, Willow started a two-out rally and saw their next five players reach base, including RBI singles from Caleb Wood and Josh Rutledge to score two. The Bears continued to battle and scored two runs off an RBI single from Trey Talbert to close the game, but their late effort was not enough to overcome their deficit.
Bears head coach Dustin Forrest noted the role errors and walks played in the contest for his team, as they walked seven and had four errors. “We came out ready, but in the first inning had the bases loaded with one out and didn’t score, and then came out the next inning and walked the lead-off guy. Looking back, walks killed us. We walked the nine-hole a couple of times. We had the bases loaded in the first, second, fifth and seventh and just couldn’t come up with a big hit.”
Coach Forrest said that in a recent contest against Houston, an error-free night and big plays made behind the pitcher were the difference makers. “We didn’t give our pitcher the same treatment tonight,” he said. “It’s tough to walk guys, not come through with big hits, and not make plays and win a game, especially in our conference.”
Standing out at the plate for the Eagles was catcher Matt Coatney, who reached base on each of his four plate appearances, including a three RBI double and a pair of stolen bases. “He had a great game, and came up with the bases loaded and got a base hit,” said Coach Hedden.
Devin Hedden also had a base hit for the Eagles to put them on the board. Dakota Millard and Koel Orchard handled pitching. “Dakota pitched well but got a little tired at the end,” said Coach Hedden. “His pitch count was about 86, and bases were loaded at that time, and Koel made a great pitch to get out of that inning. Both of those kids are competitors.”
Coach Hedden added that many players saw their first varsity competition on the night, including Caleb Clark, who batted in the nine-spot. Clark walked twice to lead off two innings and scored both times to give the Eagles a rally. “Everyone had something to do with this win and it should build their confidence as we’re thinking about the future,” said Coach Hedden. “This will be our team next year, so it’s a good opportunity for them to get a little varsity experience.”
For the Bears, Coach Forrest said that freshman pitcher Trey Talbert went 3 for 4 and pitched well, and Dakota McDaniel, sophomore, went 2 for 3 and had a big hit in his last at-bat. Korey Woody, the lone senior, “has been asked to play about every position and has come through for us this year. We’re young, but if we build around what we have, I expect big things toward the end of the year.”
The Bears drop to 5-11 on the year, and the Eagles move to 5-4.
Box score
Willow
0 2 0 0 2 0 2
Liberty
0 1 0 1 5 3 0
