Published: May 08, 2008 12:43 pm            

Cayuga having confidence at the plate

Wildcats play West Sabine in three-game series in Nacogdoches

By SCOTT TYLER

H-P Sports Editor



BETHEL — The Cayuga baseball team broke out the bats in a big way last week in a two-game thrashing of Mount Enterprise in the Class A bi-district playoff series.

The Wildcats (15-5) hope the work with the bats continues this week when Cayuga continues its playoff run in a three-game series against West Sabine (17-4). The teams will play a doubleheader starting at 5 p.m. Friday at Nacogdoches High School. If necessary, the third game will be played at 3 p.m. Saturday in Nacogdoches.

“Our confidence keeps going up at the plate,” Cayuga head coach Greg Branch said. “The kids feel they can hit anyone that is on the mound.”

The Wildcats ended district play by 10-run ruling LaPoynor and continued the hit parade against Mount Enterprise. In eight combined innings, Cayuga scored 36 runs on 24 hits. Every player in the lineup got on base at least twice and scored at least two runs.

Catcher Cory Perry was 5-for-7 in the series with two home runs and six RBI. Senior Chance Carroll was 5-for-6 with four doubles and seven RBI.

The Wildcats will need to keep up the hot hitting against a solid West Sabine defense that will not give Cayuga many opportunities to reach via the error.

“They don’t make mistakes in the field,” Branch said. “We have to keep hitting the ball hard. If we do that, good things will happen.”

Carroll and freshman Gunnar Thompson will be the starters for the first two games.

“That has been our one-two punch all year,” Branch said. “Chance will start the first game and as the senior, he helps us set the tone.”

Both pitchers won their first playoff game last week. Carroll allowed three runs in four innings and struck out seven batters. Thompson allowed two runs in four innings and struck out eight.

“Chance and Gunnar were able to get the playoff butterflies out of them last week,” Branch said. “I was a little worried last week how the younger players would respond and it was important that we performed like we did.”

It will be critical for Cayuga to limit base runners against West Sabine, who has good speed and is aggressive on the base paths.

“We can’t give up cheap bases,” Branch said. “We cannot afford to give up walks or errors. We have to make them earn their way on base.”

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Scott Tyler may be contacted via e-mail at styler@palestineherald.com

        

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