Early mishaps for the Richton Rebels forced them to fight an uphill battle for most of Thursday night’s series opener at Stringer. Despite a valiant attempt to climb back into the game, the Red Devils tacked on 5 late runs to strengthen their lead and secure a 9-1 victory to begin Round 3 of the playoffs.
The Rebels started off strong with a double hit by Garrett Brewer in the first at-bat of the ballgame, putting him in scoring position for a chance to give Richton an early lead. But the Red Devils retired the side without allowing any runs and capitalized on 3 Rebel errors in the first two innings to build an early 4-0 lead.
Richton’s starting pitcher Jacob Broome kept his composure, however, allowing no more runs for the Red Devils during his five innings on the mound. Broome allowed only 3 hits on the evening and tossed 9 strikeouts to give the Rebels a chance to claw their way back into the fold.
Owen Carter put the Rebels on the board for the first time in the top of the fifth, when an attempt to catch him stealing third base resulted in an error, allowing Carter to take home plate for a score.
But Stringer capitalized on four walks and a pair of singles in the bottom of the sixth to produce 5 more runs, and senior Christian Myers took the mound in the top of the seventh to close the deal and earn a 9-1 victory for the Red Devils.
There will be no game this evening due to Stringer’s graduation ceremony, but Richton will return home to host Game 2 of the series on Saturday evening. If the Rebels win, they will return to Stringer on Monday to determine the winner of the series in a Game 3.
