Siloam Springs didn't get down on itself after blowing a 4-0 lead in the sixth inning Friday against Long Beach, Miss.
Instead, the Panthers rose to the occasion with the game on the line.
Siloam Springs 5, Long Beach (Miss.) 4
Long Beach (Miss.)^000^004^0^—^4^10^1
Siloam Springs^300^010^1^—5^7^4
Cook, Piernas (4), Barnes (7) and Crosby; Francis, Bolstad (6) and Pruitt. W-Bolstad. L-Piernas. HR-None.
15-year-old Babe Ruth Southwest Region Tournament
Friday-Monday
James Butts Baseball Complex, Siloam Springs
Friday’s games
Game 1: Pampas (West Texas) 4, New Iberia (La.) 3
Game 2: Tri-County (South Texas) 10, Harrison 0
Game 3: Brazoswood (East Texas) 6, Pine Bluff 2
Game 4: Siloam Springs 5, Long Beach (Miss.) 4
Saturday’s games
Game 5: Pampa vs. Tri-County (n)
Game 6: Brazoswood vs. Siloam Springs, (n)
Game 7: New Iberia vs. Harrison, (n)
Game 8: Pine Bluff vs. Long Beach, (n)
Today’s games
Game 9: Loser G6 vs. Winner G7, noon
Game 10: Loser G5 vs. Winner G8, 2:30 p.m.
Game 11: Winner G5 vs. Winner G6, 5 p.m.
Game 12: Winner G9 vs. Winner G10, 7:30 p.m.
Monday’s games
Game 13: Loser G11 vs. Winner G12, 5 p.m.
Game 14: Winner G11 vs. Winner G13, 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday’s game (if necessary)
G15: Winner G14 vs. Loser G14, TBA
Daniel Kent's bases-loaded single to right field drove in Cole Reed with the winning run in Siloam Springs' 5-4 opening round win of the 15-year-old Babe Ruth Southwest Region Tournament at James Butts Baseball Complex.
Results of Saturday's games were not available at presstime. The tournament is scheduled to resume at noon today.
The Panthers (19-8-2) appeared to be cruising along in their opening game against Long Beach, the Mississippi state champion, leading 4-0 in the top of the sixth.
Long Beach, though, scored four runs and chased Panthers starting pitcher Kaleb Francis from the game. Shortstop Zac Bolstad came on in relief and got the Panthers out of the jam. Bolstad also worked a scoreless seventh inning to set the stage for the Siloam Springs bats in the bottom half of the inning.
Reed hit a ground ball deep into the hole at shortstop and beat the throw for an infield single to lead off the inning. He then moved to second base on a throwing error by the pitcher and advanced to third on a wild pitch.
Dodge Pruitt walked and stole second base, then Bolstad was hit by a pitch to load the bases for the Panthers. Long Beach brought in Max Barnes to face Kent.
Kent roped the game-winning single on the first pitch.
"We had that one bad inning (in the sixth) where it seemed like the balls bounced their way that inning," said Panthers coach Marc Hawbaker. "But credit to them, they battled back. They didn't give up. They gave us a tough one.
"But also give credit to the Panthers, our team. They didn't give up, they didn't get down on themselves. They battled back themselves and were able to come back with a win."
The North Arkansas state champion Panthers took a 3-0 lead in the first, thanks to two hits and a pair of walks.
Bolstad and Kent drew walks from Long Beach starter Darren "D.D." Cook, and Francis singled up the middle to load the bases.
Dawson Armstrong ripped a double down the right-field line to score two runs, and Josh Hunt followed with an RBI groundout to make it 3-0.
Francis, meanwhile, pitched shutout baseball into the sixth. He escaped a bases-loaded jam in the fourth and had five strikeouts.
The Panthers added a fourth run in the fifth when Kent tripled to deep right field and scored on a wild pitch.
Francis ran into trouble in the fifth. Cody Crosby was hit by a pitch to open the inning and Jack Scafide and Barnes each singled to left for Long Beach. Clayton Maxwell ripped an RBI single and Dalton Koza followed with an RBI single. Chris Piernas drove home two more with a base hit up the middle to tie the game and chase Francis from the mound.
"Our boys, they will work their way out of a hole in a heartbeat," said Long Beach coach Eric Van Norman. "They love the game. Sportsmanship is one of the things that we teach to our boys. You can see it out on the field. You can see that they love the game. They won't give up until blue (the umpire) says it's over."
Bolstad entered the game and retired Tyler Van Norman to end the scoring threat. Bolstad also worked around a two-out single and wild pitch in the top of the seventh to keep the game tied. For his performance, with included a win in relief and reaching base twice at the plate, he was named the MVP of the game.
"Having a good team behind you definitely gives you confidence going in there whenever you're needed," Bolstad said. "I'm just glad I'll have a great team behind me to back me up whenever I need it."
The Panthers had seven hits. Kent and Francis each had two hits apiece. Tyler Van Norman, Scafide and Maxwell each had two hits apiece for Long Beach, which finished the game with 10 hits.
Other results from Friday's opening round included West Texas state champion Pampa beating New Iberia, La., 4-3. South Texas champion Tri-County defeated Harrison 10-0. East Texas state champion Brazoswood defeated South Arkansas state champion Pine Bluff 6-2.
Sports on 07/27/2014