Black Sox stay alive at Junior Legion State behind Cambron
EDITOR’S NOTE: Because the look back at each day in Bryant athletic history has been so favorably received during the time when there was no sports during the COVID-19 shutdown, BryantDaily.com will continueposting past stories of Bryant athletics either posted on BryantDaily.com (from 2009 to the present) or published in the Bryant Times (from 1998 to 2008).
By Rob Patrick
SHERIDAN — In 100-degree heat on Saturday afternoon, left-hander Zach Cambron crafted a[more] seven-hit shutout as the Bryant Black Sox bounced back from Friday’s adversity with a 5-0 win over Cabot Centennial Bank at the Junior American Legion State Tournament at Oliver Williams Field.
The loss ended Cabot’s run at State while Bryant, after dropping into the losers bracket with a forfeit in Friday’s opener against Jonesboro (for details, go here), stayed alive. They’re set to play again this afternoon at 3:30 against either Wynne or Batesville.
“We’re going out to make some noise,” stated Sox manager Jimmy Parker. “We hope for nothing less than being in the championship game on Tuesday. That’s what we’re going for. We’re going a game at a time. It’s a big challenge and we’re going to have to have kids step up pitching. But they believe we can do it and it starts again (Sunday).”
Cambron walked three — two of them in the seventh as he wore down — and struck out six including the first batter of the final inning and the last, forcing Cabot to leave the bases loaded.
“He kept battling all day and that’s the thing,” commented Parker, who coached the group of 16 year olds through Babe Ruth baseball. “I have the utmost confidence in Zach. He’s done that for me for years. When it’s all clicking for him, he’s pretty tough to hit.
“The potential to do that is there night in and night out,” he added. “Today, he came out and decided he was going to go to work. He threw to his spots. He changed speeds. We had to have that performance and he gave it to us. It was big.”
The Sox gave their hurler all the runs he would need in the second inning. Tryce Schalchlin, who had two hits in the game, got the first one off Cabot lefty Lee Sullivan, a gapper to right-center that went for a triple. He scored on a wild pitch as Hayden Lessenberry was working for a walk.
A free pass to Daniel Richards and a bunt single by Trevor Ezell loaded the bases and, with two down, Tyler Green came through with a bolt down the left-field line that one-hopped over the fence for a ground-rule double to make it 3-0.
Bryant added a run in the fourth on back-to-back doubles by Ezell, who had three hits in the game, and Cambron as he helped his own cause.
A fifth run scored in the top of the fifth. With two down, Lessenberry beat out an infield hit then Richards drew a walk. Ezell dropped a single just inside the line in right chasing home Lessenberry.
The Sox tried to steal a run when Ezell drew a pick-off attempt at first. Richards took off for the plate, hoping to catch the Bankers napping but a relay home was in time to retire the side.
Marcus Wilson singled in the top of the seventh as Bryant made a bid to add to the margin. With one out, he was forced at second on a grounder by Schalchlin then Sullivan hit the wall as well as Lessenberry and Richards. He gave way to reliever Aaron McKenzie who needed just one pitch to end the inning.
Cambron, meanwhile, worked around an infield hit by Josh Dollarhide in the first inning. Dollarhide wound up with three of the Bankers’ seven hits.
In the second, Ezell made a leaping catch of a liner to short by Tristan Bulice. Glover Helpenstill singled but Landon James popped to Cody Gogus at third and Dylan Bowers flew out to Schalchlin in right.
Dollarhide singled again with one out in the third. Cambron and Cabot’s Nick Thomas then had an extended battle with Thomas fouling off four two-strike pitches before hitting a bouncer that Ezell made a sparkling play on from shortstop as Dollarhide became the first Banker to reach second. He was left there, though, when Cambron fanned Devin Burke.
He would work around a one-out single by Bulice in the fourth and a two-out walk to Dollarhide in the fifth.
Cabot’s first real threat to break up the shutout came in the sixth when Burke led off with a double to right-center. After McKenzie lined out to Schalchlin, Bulice singled. Helpenstill struck out on a pitch in the dirt that Lessenberry blocked as Burke started toward home, anticipating a throw to first by Lessenberry. But with first occupied, there was no play at first and Burke got caught in a pickle, resulting in what proved to be an inning-ending doubleplay.
Cambron struck out James to start the seventh but then walked Bowers on a 3-2 pitch. Trent Frizzell followed with a sinking liner to right. Lessenberry, having been moved to right for the final inning after catching in the heat up to then, charged the ball and scooped it up. Playing shallow anyway, Lessenberry charged the ball and came up throwing, nailing Frizzell at first before he could get there.
With two down, Dollarhide managed his third hit then Cambron walked Thomas on four pitches. With the bases juiced, Parker stayed with Cambron who battled Colby Siegler to a 3-2 count. Siegler then struck out to end the game as the Sox improved to 18-4-1 on the season.
BRYANT 5, CABOT CENTENNIAL BANK 0
Junior American Legion
Black Sox ab r h bi Bankers ab r h bi
Green, cf 3 0 1 2 Dollarhide, cf 3 0 3 0
Hurt, 2b 3 0 0 0 Thomas, 1b 3 0 0 0
Wilson, lf 3 0 1 0 Burke, dh 3 0 1 0
Gogus, 3b 4 0 0 0 Siegler, lf 1 0 0 0
Schalchlin, rf-c 3 1 2 0 McKenzie, c-p 3 0 0 0
Lessenberry, c-rf 2 2 1 0 Bulice, 3b-c 3 0 2 0
Richards, 1b 1 1 0 0 Helpenstill, lf-3b 3 0 1 0
Ezell, ss 4 1 3 1 James, rf 3 0 0 0
Cambron, p 3 0 1 1 Bowers, ss 2 0 0 0
Van Hoveln, 2b1000
Null, ph1000
Frizzell, 2b1000
Sullivan, p0000
Totals 27 5 9 4 Totals 27 0 7 0
BRYANT 030 110 0 — 5
Cabot 000 000 0 — 0
E—Bowers. DP—Bryant 1, Cabot 1. LOB—Bryant 9, Cabot 9. 2B—Green, Ezell, Cambron. 3B—Schalchlin. S—Hurt.
Pitching ip r er h bb so
BRYANT
Cambron (W) 7 0 0 7 3 6
Cabot
Sullivan 6.2 5 5 9 4 4
McKenzie 0.1 0 0 0 0 0
HBP—Green, Lessenberry, Richards (by Sullivan). WP—Sullivan 2.
