Jim Mashek

NATHAN HOWARD, MATTHEW ESCALERA THROW COMPLETE GAMES; RUSSELL COUNTY, FRANKLIN-SIMPSON WIN IN DRAMATIC FASHION

There were plenty of twists and turns on the opening day of the KHSAA 4th Region Baseball Tournament at WKU’s Nick Denes Field.

It was a long day, to be sure, even with manageable Memorial Day heat. Greenwood right-hander Nathan Howard set the tone for the tournament in the opening game, hurling an efficient three-hitter to guide the KHSAA 14th District champion Gators to a 6-1 victory over Barren County in the Monday morning game.

At that point, the drama started building.

Logan County bolted to a 3-0 first-inning lead over KHSAA 16th District champion Russell County, before the Lakers even got a chance to bat. Russell County, the state tournament runner-up in 2022, scored two runs in the bottom of the first inning and stayed within striking distance of the Cougars, but Logan County seemed to have the upper hand.

In the top of the fifth, Logan outfielder Brady Hinton delivered an RBI triple into right-center field, extending the Cougars’ lead to 5-2. Back-to-back triples from Logan County’s Davin Yates and Brady Hinton made it 6-2, in the top of the fifth, at which point the Lakers’ bats started hunkering down.

Russell County scratched out one run in the fifth, before tying the game at 6 with two runs in the sixth. Then, in the bottom of the seventh, Russell County loaded the bases with two outs against Yates, the Logan reliever.

Trace Stinger’s line drive into left-center field put the Lakers in the winner’s circle, 7-6, with their first lead of the game being the one that counted.

Warren East, the KHSAA 15th District champion, and Monroe County made their way to The Nick after an hour’s break, and the Raiders cruised to an 8-0 victory to eliminate the Falcons. Junior right-hander Matthew Escalera fired a five-hitter, sending Warren East to the semifinals, before Franklin-Simpson staged an impressive comeback in the nightcap.

South Warren’s Ethan Reynolds and Griffin Rardin delivered back-to-back, run-scoring hits with two outs in the top of the third, and Spartans right-hander Austin Allen put up some zeroes until Franklin-Simpson finally answered with three runs in the bottom of the fifth, grabbing a 3-2 lead.

Franklin-Simpson’s Braxton Jenkins delivered a bases-loaded triple down the right-field line, and the Wildcats finished off the Spartans in the top of the seventh, when Reynolds, who batted over .500 this season, hit into a game-ending double play with runners on first and second base.

“That’s who we are,” Franklin-Simpson coach Matthew Wilhite said. “Our pitchers do a really good job of keeping us in games, we play really good defense and just try to find a chance to score runs …

“We don’t bash it all over the place … (We) try to find a way to get on base, and then obviously get a big hit like (Jenkins’ triple).”

Greenwood (27-9) will face tradition-rich Russell County (28-10) in the first semifinal, at 5:30 p.m. on Tuesday, followed by the nightcap pitting Warren East (23-14) and Franklin-Simpson (22-14). The 4th Region championship game is scheduled for Wednesday evening, with the winning team advancing to the KHSAA State Tournament beginning June 6 at Lexington’s Legends Field.

(The state tournament has again been moved from UK’s Kentucky Proud Park, because of the success of the second-ranked Wildcats in college baseball.)

GREENWOOD 6, BARREN COUNTY 1

Greenwood earned its first KHSAA 4th Region victory since 2013, turning to junior right-hander Nathan Howard to lead the way.

Howard delivered, allowing just one hit over the first six innings, before the Trojans loaded the bases with two outs in the top of the seventh. Howard struck out Barren County’s Jackson Reece, however, to send the Trojans packing while sending the Gators to the semifinals.

“The guys were locked in, from the beginning,” Greenwood coach Jason Jaggers said. “We got going early, fed ’em at 7 (in the morning) before we came over here from the high school. We’ve got a great group of young men.”

Jaggers did his customary selfie with his players, near the soon-to-be-demolished WKU baseball office, before sending them their separate ways. Howard, a crafty junior right-hander, earned his eighth victory in nine decisions. His catcher, Jake Russell, usually has a teammate hitting in his spot as DH, allowing him to concentrate on his defense.

An area in which he has shined all season.

“Nathan was hitting his spots,” Russell said. “He changed speeds, kept the ball down and got lots of swings-and-misses.”

Cyler Talley had the critical hit for the Gators, chasing Tristan Meech, Barren County’s starting pitcher, with a two-run double over the head of Trojans left fielder Jordan Harris.

(That was a trend that continued throughout the day, with some outfielders perhaps playing too shallow on the fast artificial turf of WKU’s Nick Denes Field.)

“That’s probably the best ball I’ve hit this season, it was a 1-2 pitch down the middle,” Talley said. “(Meech) probably got too much of the plate. We played really loose today. I just tried to do what I could, to help the boys.”

Greenwood tends to rely on pitching and defense, with a modest .282 team batting average and just four home runs on the season. The Gators have endured a slump in early May and will take a five-game winning streak into Tuesday’s semifinal against Russell County.

RUSSELL COUNTY 7, LOGAN COUNTY 6

It was clearly a heartbreaker for the Cougars, who finish the season at 17-16.

Starting pitcher Chance Sweeney turned in a gutty performance, working into the sixth inning before yielding to teammate Davin Yates with two outs and two men on base. Russell County’s Mayes Gosser delivered a two-run double into the left-field corner, tying the game at 6, before Yates retired cleanup batter Jack Shearer on a fly ball to center field.

The Cougars put up single runs in the fifth and sixth innings, but they stranded a runner at third in the fifth, and had another man thrown out at third base by Russell County right fielder Walker Stephens.

Logan County’s Hunter Butler had a two-run single to right-center field in the first inning, and Sweeney added an RBI single up the middle in the second.

Senior right-hander Lincoln Helm entered the game with one out in the top of the sixth and was the Lakers’ winning pitcher. Davin Yates, the Cougars’ outstanding three-sport athlete — football, basketball and baseball — took the loss.

Since the 2020 KHSAA baseball season was wiped out by the COVID-19 pandemic, Russell County coach David Rexroat’s squads have posted a combined 113-34 record. Bowling Green High School eliminated the Lakers in 4th Region semifinal play last year, 6-5, before South Warren posted a 7-3 victory over the Purples in the championship game.

Greenwood coach Jason Jaggers is expected to start senior right-hander Zach Davis (2-3, 2.71 ERA) or junior left-hander Chaze Huff (3-2, 2,37 ERA, four saves) in today’s semifinal game against Russell County. Davis, however, also is usually the Gators’ starting shortstop, which could bring Greenwood infielder/pitcher James Russell (5-0, 2.04 ERA) into the picture.

Russell County sports an impressive .332 team batting average, along with 93 extra-base hits, including 11 home runs. Senior right-hander Austin Bartrug (4-1, 2.60 ERA). Bartrug has allowed just 30 hits in 40 1/3 innings pitched, with 55 strikeouts and 35 walks.

WARREN EAST 8, MONROE COUNTY 0

Warren East earned its 13th victory in its last 15 games, picking up where it left off after a resounding 16-4 victory over Barren County on Thursday night at Bowling Green High School.

“”The kids are playing hard. They continue to play for each other,” said longtime Warren East coach Wes Sanford. “Matthew (Escalera, the Raiders’ starting pitcher) showed some nerves in the first inning, but he fought through it.”

Monroe County, which finished its season at 12-17-1 overall, loaded the bases with one out in the top of the first. But Escalera induced a two-hopper from the Falcons’ Briar Bourque, and the Raiders turned a 4-6-3 double play to get out of the jam.

“I was all over the place in that first inning,” Escalera said. “In the fifth inning, I looked up at the scoreboard and said to myself, ‘I’ve got to settle down and finish this thing.”

Monroe County managed five hits against Escalera, but the Falcons had a disastrous day defensively, committing five errors. The Raiders have counted on their team speed this season, and senior outfielder Maddux Tarrence had two triples and a bloop single while scoring three runs. Warren East’s Tray Price went 2-for-3 with a triple, two runs scored and three RBI. Price’s sacrifice fly in the first inning made it 2-0 in the bottom of the first inning.

Escalera, a junior right-hander, earned his fifth victory against a single defeat. Sophomore right-hander Caden Geralds took the loss for the Falcons, dropping to 5-3.

FRANKLIN-SIMPSON 3, SOUTH WARREN 2

South Warren, a state tournament quarterfinalist last season, tried to hold on after grabbing a 2-0 lead, but the Wildcats made it happen in the bottom of the fifth.

Franklin-Simpson’s Braxton Jenkins delivered a bases-loaded line drive inside the right-field foul line with two outs in the fifth, and the Wildcats rolled with the momentum.

“That was our season, encapsulated, right there,” South Warren coach Chris Gage said. “The (Gavin) Link kid for Franklin-Simpson, he pitched really well.”

Link took the Wildcats into the seventh inning, and he departed after a fly ball off the bat of South’s Camden Page was lost in the lights, falling for a one-out single.

That brought Ethan Reynolds, the Spartans football/baseball star and a WKU baseball commit, to the plate with the tying run in scoring position. Franklin-Simpson reliever Brevin Scott induced the double-play grounder from Reynolds, however, sending the Wildcats’ fans into a frenzy.

South Warren finished its season with an 18-18 overall record.