SPARTANBURG, S.C – On the night that the Inman's 1971 team was honored for their trip to the state title series, the 2021 team done their best to honor their predecessors by punching their own ticket to the state tournament with an 8-1 victory over Spartanburg.
Prior to Wednesday’s game at Historic Duncan Park, the 1971 Inman Post 45 team celebrated a 50 year reunion, featuring a pregame ceremony that commemorated their journey to the best-of-seven state title series against Congaree. Inman head coach Steve Skinner, who was a member of that team where he played three infield positions (first, third, and shortstop), said it's always special getting to see his former teammates. “It’s always good to see those guys,” Skinner said with a smile. “That was a special group and we were pretty close. We had a good ball team and had a good run. There’s a lot of good memories there. We came up short of the state championship, but we had a lot of fun playing.” Spartanburg struck early in the first when Elier Sanchez tripled to right-center field. Dylan Ramirez drove in Sanchez with an infield single, staking Post 28 to a 1-0 lead. Inman tied the game when Grayson Selepes hit a sacrifice fly to center in the third inning, allowing Ryan Hall to tag up and score. Post 45 uncorked a big inning in the fourth, sending nine men up to bat and plating four runs on six hits. In the frame, four Inman batters in a row – Jimmy Rosengrant, Jake Murray, Vance Wagner, and Ryan Hall – all notched a hit with one out. Wagner, Cooper Gentry, Grayson Selepes, and Paxton Tolleson each drove in a run during the flurry. “Seeing a guy like (Spartanburg’s Adam Stacy),” Rosengrant stated. “You really have to have a good approach at the plate. I feel like our whole team had a solid approach tonight and it carried over. We’re playing good as a team right now and are having fun out there.” “I was concentrating on sitting back, watching the ball in, and making good contact,” added Hall, who reached base four times in four at-bats, including a pair of doubles. “Last time, we didn’t get that many hits off of (Stacy). It was nice to come out here tonight and perform well this time around.” Post 45 southpaw Dylan Anderson did a masterful job on the mound, as he held Spartanburg to one run on four hits in a complete game effort, striking out four. “Dylan is a quality pitcher,” Skinner said. “He’s got a good breaking ball and his fastball is sneaky because of his off-speed stuff. When he throws strikes, he’s always effective. He threw strikes tonight and really kept them off-balance. It feels good to have earned the opportunity to play for state.” Inman (13-3) will now have some time to rest and prepare for the eight team tournament (double elimination format), which is scheduled to begin on Monday, July 26th at Segra Park. Their opponent and game time are TBD but make sure to check Twitter for updates by following: @bssportsjournal @j_math23 and @post45inman. -Justin Mathis INMAN, S.C – On Tuesday evening, two longtime rivals locked horns in the second round of the American Legion playoffs as Spartanburg Post 28 faced Inman Post 45 at Jim Everhart Field.
Pitching commanded the spotlight on this night, but a late spark propelled Inman to a 3-2 victory over Spartanburg in the best-of-three series. Starting pitchers Will Long (Spartanburg) and Landon Ellis (Inman) did yeoman’s work and kept batters off-balance throughout the contest. Ellis tossed six innings, scattering six hits and holding Post 28 to two runs while striking out five. Long logged six innings of work as well, yielding three runs on six hits. “Both pitchers just pitched their hearts out,” said Inman head coach Steve Skinner. “Both of those guys were battling all night long. It could have honestly gone either way tonight. We were just fortunate to win at the end.” In the fifth inning, Shane Blackwood hit a 3-1 pitch over the left-center field wall, breaking a scoreless tie and staking Spartanburg to a 2-0 advantage. Inman answered in their half of the frame on a Cooper Gentry two-run single to left, driving in Jimmy Rosengrant and Vance Wagner to score, tying the game at two. With the game still deadlocked entering the sixth inning, Inman took their first and only lead of the game when Tyler Rogers smacked an 0-2 offering to right field for a solo home run. “We were able to put together a rally there in the fifth and sixth,” Rogers stated. “It always feels good to feel like you’re helping out the team. I wasn’t trying to do too much and wanted to get a hit for the guys. We know what we have to do – go out there and play our game.” Rogers’ home run proved to be the difference as Carter Sloand worked around a one-out single in the seventh inning to pick up the save for Post 45. Inman (12-3) will travel to Duncan Park on Wednesday evening for game two of the series against Spartanburg with a planned first pitch time of 7:00 PM. -Justin Mathis |