Unleashing an offensive barrage late in the contest, the Houston High School baseball team beat Cabool, 15-3, in a run-rule shortened South Central Association matchup Thursday at Jack Cook Memorial Field in Cabool.
After both teams scored twice in the first inning and neither got a run in the second, the visiting Tigers took control of the game with 4 runs in the top of the third frame with a rally including 3 singles, 3 walks and a hit batter.
The host Bulldogs got another run in the bottom of the third inning, but Houston scored 3 times in the fourth and 6 times in the fifth to secure the run-rule win.
The Tigers finished with 14 hits in the contest.
HHS junior Jasper McCloy hit his fourth home run of the year during the fifth inning outburst, a 2-run shot to straightaway left field. He smacked a double in the first inning and went 3-for-5 at the plate in the game with 3 RBIs, raising his team-leading season total to 24.
McCloy – the Tigers’ regular catcher – also pitched for the first time in the season, closing out the game with a 1-2-3 fifth inning, including a strikeout. He more or less called his homer. As he was on deck, he turned toward nearby Houston fans and said, “it’s time for a long drive.” He then went yard on the first pitch of his at-bat.
Freshman Blake Sanders spent the first 4 innings on the mound for Houston, allowing only 3 hits and 1 earned run while striking out 5 and walking 1. Sanders also had 3 singles in 3 trips to the plate and drove in 3 runs. Senior Ethan Carter played first base for the Tigers and went 2-for-4 with 2 RBIs and 3 runs scored.
“The game wasn’t as clean as we would’ve liked it the first two innings,” said HHS head coach Brent Hall. “In the rest of the game, we cleaned things up and had a great approach at the plate, which was the difference in the game.”
The loss left the Bulldogs with a record of 1-11, 0-5 in the SCA.
In position to possibly earn a share of the conference championship, the Diamond Tigers (10-7, 4-1 SCA) host a key SCA game against Ava on Monday. The Bears are 11-4 and 6-0 in conference play.
Thursday’s victory left Hall one win away from 400 for his career, as his record now stands at 399-257.
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