Junior Sox rally for walk-off in bottom of the 7th to edge Fort Smith at Area tourney
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MAUMELLE — The Bryant Black Sox Junior American Legion team rallied for two runs in the bottom of the seventh to snatch away a walk-off victory from the Fort Smith Sportsman team in the opening round of the Junior (17U) American Legion Area 1 District Tournament on Saturday.
Fort Smith scored a run in the top of the first and it held up until Bryant’s rally in the bottom of the seventh.
The Sox, 21-7, advance to play River Valley on Sunday at 1 p.m.
In the seventh, Aaron Morgan cracked a one-out single to left then, on a 3-2 pitch, Colby Morrow belted a pinch-hit single to center.
The uprising lost some of its momentum when Morgan was thrown out trying to steal third and when J.T. Parker hit a fly toward right, it looked like Bryant’s hopes might be dashed. But Parker’s drive was misplayed and Logan White, running for Morrow, scored all the way from first to tie the game. Parker, who wound up on second, raced home with the game-winner when Will Hathcote drilled a single to left.
Lefty Tyler Bates picked up the win in relief of starter Peyton Dillon who started and worked through six innings, allowing one unearned run on two hits with two walks and 13 strikeouts. He reached 99 pitches at the end of the sixth so Bates took over in the seventh and set down Sportsman without a hit, fanning two more.
Bryant was limited to just one hit over the first six inning. Fort Smith got a single in the top of the second and managed a second one in the top of the fourth. Dillon pitched around a one-out error in the fifth.
Meanwhile, the first 10 Black Sox batters were retired before Noah Davis singled to left with one out in the bottom of the fourth. But then the next eight of nine were set down with only a lead-off walk by Dakota Clay interrupting.
Fort Smith’s run in the first was a product of a walk and a trio of wild pitches before Dillon finished striking out the side.
