INMAN, S.C. – On Thursday evening, the Inman Dixie Majors baseball team took the field to play their fourth and fifth games over a four day span this week against Spartanburg in a doubleheader.
Spartanburg established the momentum early in game one and claimed a 12-0 victory. In game two, they had to battle tooth and nail with Inman for a 10-6 win. Spartanburg (9-0) claims the regular season league championship with three games left and secures a berth in the Dixie Majors state tournament at Collins Park in North Charleston. In game one, Spartanburg’s offense exploded in the first inning as they sent 12 men to the plate and struck for seven runs on two walks and six hits, including a two-run single by Matt Powell and a two-run double by Landon Jennings. That inning set the tone for Rylan Brown on the mound, as he tossed a one-hitter. The lone Inman hit in the contest was a leadoff single by Grayson Selepes in the bottom of the first. “The guys came out focused and ready to play,” said Spartanburg coach Blake Burress. “We wanted to use this as a learning experience because next weekend (at state), we may have to win two games in a day to stay away from elimination. We played well tonight – not a whole lot to complain about.” As for game two, it was a back and forth battle. Spartanburg opened game two with a three-run opening frame on the strength of four hits and a hit batsman. Inman responded with a three-run outburst of their own in the bottom of the frame to tie the game, aided by a two-run homer by Paxton Tolleson. Later on in the third inning, trailing by two runs, Triton McSwain smacked a two-run single through the infield, tying the game at six. Over the last two innings, Spartanburg plated four runs, three of which were driven in by Powell, to emerge with the win. “We hit their bats really good in that first game,” Inman coach Steve Skinner said. “They hit everything we threw up there and hit it hard. Without any doubt, they have the best hitting team in our league. We had a shot in the second game. We kept battling and stayed in it. We just didn’t have enough tonight.” On Monday, July 6th, Inman (6-4) will play host to Buffalo at 7 PM, while Spartanburg travels to Gaffney. -Justin Mathis Comments are closed.
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