By Stephen Smoot
Pendleton Times
Mountain Media, LLC
Photos by WVSSAC
Last Wednesday and three days before entertaining reigning state champion East Hardy, Pendleton County scored 10 runs on Class AA state tournament qualifier Lincoln (Harrison County). As Sam Yokum, head coach, explained, that performance helped the team to see the potential of what they could accomplish in Huntington.
“Some of our guys are baseball guys, others are three sport athletes,” he said, but shared that the common denominator is toughness and the constant desire to keep getting better.” Yokum added that “we’re playing a lot of young guys,” but also that they have stepped up all season long, made plays, and contributed more and more.
The Wildcats did not face just any team in the first round; the schedulers pitted them against a Cougar squad that combines tremendous experience and championship swagger.
Shayne Sisler took to the mound for East Hardy to face Wildcat batters in the top of the first. While he earned three outs in short order, the manner in which the Wildcat batters made outs foreshadowed how the game would progress.
Each of those who came up, Travis Owens, Jaxon Simon, and Chase Owens, hit solid line drives directly back up the middle, but right at the centerfielder. This indicated that they came into the game with a bead on the pitcher and had him already timed up.
The Cougar half of the first opened with Chase Owens getting leadoff batter Evan Hamilton to swing at the third strike, but the next man at bat hit a line drive to center. After Mason Hamilton took first, then stole second during Levi Price’s at bat, an errant play allowed a run to score.
While the Wildcats went to the top of the second down 1-0, that changed rapidly. Cashton Kisamore created another rumbling of thunder by driving the ball nearly to the warning track in center for a loud out. Then Mason Miller hit the first pitch to him towards short, reaching second base after an error. Two batters later and with two outs, Cole Harper pulled a nine iron shot to the right field corner, sending Miller home and evening the score at one run a piece.
Chase Owens retired the side in order in the bottom of the second and the Cougars returned the favor in the top of the third. Noah Lockard singled to lead off, but a double play and a fly out, once again to center, closed down the inning.
In the bottom of the third, two quick ground outs did not deter the boys from Baker. Evan Hamilton singled, followed by a line drive single by Mason Hamilton to right. When Price came to bat with runners on the corners, East Hardy executed a daring double steal that put them up by one again. Price grounded out to end the inning after.
To start the fourth, Chase Owens earned a walk on four pitches with the heart of the order coming up for his squad. Kisamore came to the plate next. During his at bat, Chase Owens stole himself into scoring position.
Kisamore hit a soft bouncer back to the pitcher. Chase Owens pulled away from the base just enough to distract the pitcher who overthrew first base. That scored a Wildcat run and put Kisamore on second. With one strike to him in the next at bat, Miller drove a double to left and put his team up 3-2.
Still in the top of the fourth with no outs, Mason Harper hit a single that sent in Miller and set the score at 4-2. Two batters later with one out on the board, Landon Davis chopped a ball hard to short, then hustled hard down the line to beat the throw to first.
Later in the inning and with two outs, Travis Owens came to bat with runners on second and third, pushing a seeing eye single into centerfield, breaking open the game for the Wildcats 6-2.
After the offensive explosion in the top of the fourth, Chase Owens needed to keep the door closed on Cougar run production. Sisler and Dayton Dove each singled, leaving runners at the corners with no outs, a perfect spot for East Hardy to counterpunch after the big Wildcat inning. Chase Owens then brought his senior experience to bear, striking out Greg Dove with a wicked fast ball, then getting Eli Combs to strike out swinging as well. The third out came on a ground ball to short.
In the top of the fifth, East Hardy put Mason Hamilton on the mound. He faced first the hot hitting Simon who hit a stand up double to left field. A bloop single to shallow right by Chase Owens put runners at the corners for the Wildcats, who did not waste the opportunity to add distance between themselves and the Cougars.
Kisamore drove the ball deep, over the head of the centerfielder to the wall. The seventh and eighth runs came over the plate, giving the underdogs an 8-2 advantage going into the Cougar half of the fifth. Patrick Mills led off and hit a screaming line drive that looked to be trouble until Travis Owens leapt high into the air to pull the ball down for the first out.
As the game progressed after the five o’ clock start time, the blinding summer sun gradually dropped lower in the sky behind third base. Evan Hamilton lofted a fly ball to deep right which dropped to the turf as the right fielder lost it in the glare of the sun. Mason Hamilton came to the plate with Evan Hamilton on third. He reached safely on a fly ball as well, knocking a run in and closing the score to 8-3.
The defense, however, recorded two outs in succession to end the threat. In the top of the sixth, East Hardy held the line and set down the three Wildcat batters in order. At times during his career, a fireball strikeout artist, Chase Owens, relied on the solid execution of his infielders and outfielders behind him to keep the Cougars quiet.
East Hardy pitching continued to keep the Cougars within a dangerous distance of Pendleton County’s lead. Simon grounded out to lead off the top of the seventh.
As Pendleton County batters tried to extend the lead late, Travis Owens went to the bullpen and started warming up.
Still in the top of the seventh, Chase Owens tried to sneak a bunt against the Cougar defense. He softly popped it into the no-mans-land between pitcher and catcher. It could have been trouble, but the English on the spinning ball put it directly into the glove of the catcher, who threw him out easily.
One hour and 45 minutes after the first pitch, Chase Owens took the mound three outs away from eliminating the state champions and moving within two games of a title matchup. East Hardy’s dugout jockeys made a shrill noise trying to distract the indefatigable senior.
In this inning, he started working the batters first with high fastballs, locating them in places where the batter would either swing under and miss or pop it up harmlessly. By and large, the Cougars did not fall for this gambit. They continued to force the pitcher to confront them in the strike zone.
He got the leadoff batter to ground out to short. Mills up next grounded the ball to second. First baseman Cole Harper had to kick his right leg out as he extended to catch the throw while keeping his left foot rooted firmly on the base.
Pendleton County was one out away from advancing, but East Hardy never stopped grinding away.
Leadoff hitter and all-around playmaker Evan Hamilton came through for the Cougars, doubling to left. With first base open, Yokum opted to intentionally walk the dangerous Mason Hamilton to put force outs on all three bases. Then Levi Price drew a walk on four pitches to load the bases.
Armed and ready, Travis Owens stepped into the game to save one of the most important wins of his elder brother’s life. With two balls and no strikes, the next pitch hit Simon’s foot, but he swiftly corralled it to keep the runners in place. The batter, Sisler, earned a walk, getting an RBI for the fourth run, and bringing the tying run to the plate in Dayton Dove.
But there would be no dramatics in this at bat. With one strike recorded, Dove hit an easy grounder to short. Chase Owens gathered in the ball, looked to second, and tossed the ball to second as gently and carefully as if it was grandma’s favorite antique vase. The out secured an 8-4 win over the Cougars, advancing the Wildcats in tournament game.
Evan and Mason Hamilton accounted for four of East Hardy’s six hits and all of their runs scored. The Wildcats had remarkably even production with each player who appeared in the game recording a single hit. Travis Owens and Kisamore each led the team with two RBIs Chase Owens pitched six and two thirds innings, allowing only two earned runs and striking out four.
Today, the Wildcats will take on the Sherman Tide and their 25 and nine record. Sherman has also played up against higher classification schools during their season, including two decisive late season wins against Class AAA South Charleston.
The two teams will meet 50 minutes after the conclusion of the 10 a.m. contest at Jack Cook Field in Huntington.
