Confidence at the plate
Anderson County’s bats are coming alive
Anderson County’s Aydin Bond hustles down the line on a close play at first against Carter last Tuesday. (photo:Richard Evans )
The Hornets took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the fourth, but the Mavs responded with three runs to take a 3-1 lead in the top of the fifth.
Carter tied the game with two runs in the bottom of the inning and scored two runs in the bottom of the sixth to take the lead and win.
Mason Lively got a quality start, but took the loss. He went five-and-two-thirds innings and allowed three earned runs with one strikeout and four walks.
At the plate, Thor Williams went 2-3 while Wyatt Cox was 1-3 with a double and an RBI. Logan Housewright and Luke Lowery each added a hit as well.
On Tuesday, the Mavs beat visiting Carter 9-5.
“Our offensive approach was the difference between the two [Carter] games. Our guys are getting more confident at the plate,” said Josh Boynton, head coach of the Mavericks.
The Hornets scored on a lead-off homer in the first but the Mavs took the lead in the bottom half of the inning when Hayden Hartgrove singled and then reached second on an error.
Lowery then walked. Both runners advanced on a wild pitch. Hayden Hartgrove scored on a groundout by Hudson Hartgrove and then Lowery scored on a base hit by Bryson Wolfenbarger to give Anderson County a 2-1 lead.
The Mavs added six runs in the bottom of the second when Cox led off with a double and then scored on a base hit by Aydin Bond. Hayden Hartgrove reached on a base hit. Lowery drew another walk and then Hudson Hartgrove walked to score Bond. Williams then scored Hayden Hartgrove on sac fly to center. Wolfenbarger then doubled in Lowery. Eli Davis then doubled in Hudson Hartgrove and Wolfenbarger.
The Mavs added a run late to extend the lead but Carter scored four runs in the top of the seventh to make it a 9-5 final.
“I told the guys we probably should have put them away, it could have been a five inning game but we’re getting more confident in what we’re doing,” Boynton said.
Wolfenbarger got the start and the win as he went six and two-thirds innings and allowed five earned runs on eight hits with six strikeouts and five walks. At the plate, he was 1-3 with a double and an RBI.
Davis finished 2-4 with two doubles and two RBI while Lowery was 1-1 with three walks and two runs scored.
Cox and Hayden Hartgrove each collected two hits.
On Friday, Anderson County picked up a 10-7 win at Lenoir City.
“Up and down the lineup our guys hit it really well. Aydin Bond pitched a really good game and the defense played a really good game behind him. Overall, it was a pretty solid team win,” Boynton said.
The Panthers took a 1-0 lead in the first but the Mavs scored seven runs in the second to take a commanding lead. They added a run in the third and another in the fourth to go up 9-1. Lenoir City scored two in the bottom of the fourth but the Mavs added a run in the sixth.
The Panthers scored once in the sixth and three in seventh to make the final 10-7.
Bond got the start and the win. He pitched six innings and allowed three earned runs on six hits with four strikeouts and three walks. At the plate, he was 2-2 with a walk.
Hayden Hartgrove earned the save. He pitched one inning and allowed two earned runs on three hits with one strikeout and one walk.
Lowery was 3-3 with two doubles and three RBI while Wolfenbarger was 2-4 with three RBI.
Cox went for 2-3 with two RBI and Hudson Hartgrove was 1-3 with an RBI.
On Saturday, the Mavs beat visiting South Doyle on a windswept afternoon by a score of 9-5.
“It was a rough start but we only had one inning where we didn’t score a run. The last three games we’ve hit it really well,” Boynton said.
After the Cherokees scored two in the top of the first, the Mavs tied the game at 2-2 in the bottom of the inning on a two-run homer by Hudson Hartgrove.
South Doyle scored two more in the top of the second to go ahead 4-2 but Anderson County added three in the third to take the lead at 5-4. They added two in the fourth and one in the fifth and one in the sixth.
Cox pitched five innings for the win. He allowed five earned runs on eight hits with three strikeouts and four walks.
Hudson Hartgrove paced the offense with a 3-3 performance at the plate which included a home run and three RBI.
Housewright was 1-4 with a triple and an RBI. Lead-off hitter Hayden Hartgrove was 1-2 with a triple, three runs scored, and two walks.
The Mavs return to action on Thursday when they host Cocke County at 2:30 p.m. in the Clinch River Challenge. At press time it is not known if the Mavs will play on Friday. They were scheduled to host Northview but they dropped out of the showcase. On Saturday, Anderson County will host Union County at 11 a.m. and Cherokee at 4 p.m. They visit Scott on Monday at 5 p.m. and will host Scott on Tuesday at 6 p.m.