THOMASVILLE — A back-and-forth affair Sunday ended in a one-run loss for the Hamlet Junior American Legion baseball team.
Playing on the road at HiToms Post 87, Hamlet came up short by a final score of 14-13.
Tied 6-6 after two innings, Hamlet led 8-6 after the third. Post 87 used a four-run fourth to take a 10-8 lead.
Hamlet tied it at 10 runs with two runs in the sixth and trailed by a run after the home half. Both teams scored three runs in the seventh inning, ending in a walk-off for Post 87.
Noah Trexler (2.1 innings), Jeffery Dieffenbach (4.0 innings) and Colton Trexler (0.1 innings) combined for Hamlet’s pitching effort.
Two of Noah Trexler’s six runs allowed were earned on three hits with a strikeout. Dieffenbach struck out four batters and allowed seven runs (three earned) on a pair of hits.
In the final inning, Colton Trexler gave up an unearned run on a hit and had one K.
Hamlet connected for 17 hits as a team, led by Dean Cottle and Willie Hooks, who each had three hits and two runs batted in. Cottle had a double, Hamlet’s only extra-base hit in the game.
Jake Smith, Cooper Perkins, Emery Owens and Riley Fields knocked a pair of base hits each. Finishing with a single apiece were Jackson Parsons and Dieffenbach.
Smith and Parsons also drove in two RBI, two of four Junior 49ers to tally that amount. Owens and Fields both had one RBI.
Hamlet took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first thanks to RBI singles by Owens and Fields.
Building their lead to 6-0 in the top of the second, the Junior 49ers added four more runs. Parsons doubled the lead to 4-0 with a two-RBI infield single. Hooks followed with a base hit that scored both of his two RBI.
Post 87 erased Hamlet’s lead and tied the game with a six-run bottom of the second.
Retaking the lead 8-6 with a two-run third inning, Hamlet scored its first run when Perkins (single) crossed home plate on a wild pitch. Hooks provided a run with a base hit to left to score Owens (walk).
Again, HiToms rallied with a four-run fourth frame to regain a 10-8 advantage.
Coming in clutch with two outs in the top of the sixth, Smith delivered with the bases loaded to tie the game at 10 runs. He barreled up a two-RBI single on a liner to center, scoring Hooks (single) and Cottle (double).
A hit-by-pitch with the bases loaded in the bottom of the inning gave Post 87 a one-run lead.
Hamlet’s three-run seventh inning started with Parsons (fielder’s choice) scoring when Hooks reached on an error. Cottle capped his big game with a two-RBI base hit to right field, which scored Colton Cooke (walk) and Hooks to make it 13-11.
The lead wouldn’t hold, however, as Post 87 scored its three runs in the final inning with two outs. Those runs scored via a wild pitch, an RBI single and an error.
The Junior 49ers (3-5, 1-5 Area 3) play at home Monday to start their final week of the season. They’ll host Chatham County Post 305 at 7 p.m.
