Published: May 09, 2008 02:55 pm            

Sandies take advantage of mistakes for win

Grapeland takes 1-0 lead over Cushing

By SCOTT TYLER

H-P Sports Editor



WHITEHOUSE — The Grapeland Sandies took advantage of several Cushing miscues Thursday night for a 7-3 win to take the first game of a best-of-three Class A area round series.

“The game could have, should have been a lot closer,” Grapeland head coach Wes Padgett said. “But we did a good job putting the ball in play and forcing them to make plays.”

The series continues at 7 p.m. today at Whitehouse with the second game.

Thursday night, Cushing committed 10 errors that led to six of Grapeland’s seven runs being unearned. On the other side, Grapeland did not have an error.

“The key to winning games is making the routine plays,” Padgett said.

Cushing took a 3-1 lead in the top of the fourth inning, with two runs coming off a squeeze bunt. Jared Murray struck out Mikey Gaddis to end the inning and leave the deficit at two runs.

“A big part of the game was keeping them at a three spot in that inning,” Padgett said. “Jared did a good job tonight even though he was a little under the weather and did not have his best stuff.”

Murray settled down after the fourth inning and allowed only two base runners the next three innings which allowed his team the chance to come back.

“Jared looked really good the last three innings,” the Grapeland head coach said. “He got into a rhythm and had a little more velocity.”

Grapeland tied the game at 3-3 in the bottom of the fourth inning on two-out RBI singles by Joey Thorpe and Murray.

The Sandies would retake the lead in the fifth inning with three runs on only one hit as Grapeland took advantage of three Cushing errors.

With a runner on first and one out, Andrew Davis put down a sacrifice bunt, but the throw sailed wide at first base, allowing Ty Kellum to score and Davis to go around to third base.

“A key part of the game was that bunt,” Padgett said. “We do not bunt very much so I think we caught them off guard.”

Austin Cheatham reached on an error to shortstop that scored Davis and Grapeland led 5-3.

Aggressive base running and another error later in the inning led to Grapeland’s sixth run. With runners on first and second, Thorpe hit a comebacker to the mound and Cushing’s Tyler Greshman fielded the ball and got the force out at third base.

But as Cushing tried to turn the double play at first base, Tony Taylor aggressively went to third base and scored on an overthrow back to third.

“I was proud of the way the kids came back,” Padgett said. “We played a whole seven innings.”

Murray finished the game by striking out the side in the seventh inning to give Grapeland the win. Murray finished with 10 strikeouts.

With a chance to end the series tonight, Padgett said he wanted to see the same kind of effort from his team.

“We know this is not a team that is going to go away,” Padgett said of Cushing. “We play well under pressure and we need to come out and play well again.”

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

        

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