INMAN, S.C. – It was a fresh start on Wednesday evening as Inman opened play in the South Carolina American League after completing their Dixie League season a couple of days ago.
Inman came out swinging from their first turn at bat and never looked back en route to a 12-2 win by run-rule over Simpsonville in five innings. After Ben Hutchins stranded a Devildog base runner in the first inning, Inman wasted little time getting the offense rolling in their first trip to the plate. With two on and two out, Jake Cothran smacked an opposite-field single to right-center, scoring Grayson Selepes and Nelson Crooke, the courtesy runner for Paxton Tolleson, for a 2-0 Inman lead. “We were upset that we couldn’t get it finished in North Charleston (at the Dixie Majors state tournament,” said Cothran. “We came out motivated, took what the pitcher gave us, and hit it backside. That’s what most of our hits were. We want to come in, be competitive every night, and get some wins.” Later in the second, Inman broke the game open with a six run frame. Ryan Hall singled to right, scoring Aaron Thomas. Paxton Tolleson hit a Texas Leaguer to right-center, which cleared the bases. Cothran smacked an opposite-field double to right-center, scoring Crooke and Tyler Rogers, extending their lead to 8-0. “We did a good job of hitting the ball and putting it play,” Tolleson stated. “We didn’t strike out as many times, which was good. Being comfortable at the plate is the main thing. I knew I’d have people on base to drive in. All we needed was a couple of days off to rest.” Jacob Murray added an RBI double in the third and Thomas knocked in two more on a single in the fourth. With the bases loaded and one out in the fifth, Cothran drilled a sacrifice fly to left, scoring Cullison from third to end the game. “That’s the best we’ve hit the ball all year,” Inman coach Steve Skinner exclaimed. “If we had just a few of those hits in Charleston, I believe we’d be going to Alabama (for the Dixie League World Series). I was shocked at how well we hit the ball. I’ve always known we were capable, but we just hadn’t done it up to this point. We hit it solid tonight.” Ben Hutchins posted a strong outing on the mound for Inman, tossing a complete game. He yielded just two runs, while striking out five, which included sitting down the Simpsonville lineup in order during the fourth inning. “This was probably the best that Ben has pitched all year,” Skinner remarked. “He looked so comfortable out there. He was in a groove, throwing strikes, and did a heck of a job for us tonight.” Inman (1-0) will travel to face Simpsonville on Thursday evening at Shoeless Joe Jackson Memorial Park in Greenville as part of a junior/senior doubleheader, beginning at 5:30 PM. The address for the field is 406 West Avenue, Greenville, SC 29611. -Justin Mathis Comments are closed.
|