By Shannon Fagan, WEIS Sports Director
SAND ROCK – Spring Garden senior Dawson Ellzey made his first varsity baseball start on the mound Friday at Sand Rock.
The Panther hitters made sure he had plenty of run support early.
Spring Garden scored six runs in the top of the first inning and held a nine-run lead through 4 ½ innings before Sand Rock’s bats began to chip away.
However it was too little too late for the Wildcats, as Spring Garden came away with an 11-6 victory.
Ellzey earned the win after working five innings, four of which were scoreless. He finished giving up two runs on three hits with four walks and five strikeouts to earn the win for the Panthers (4-5).
“I really just tried to throw strikes, let them hit it, and let my teammates behind me make the plays,” Ellzey said. “They’ve got some good hitters, but we scored a lot and stayed in the lead. It’s a lot more comfortable when you have a lead. You’re in the zone more. You feel better.”
“I thought he did a really good job,” Spring Garden coach Kyle Garmon said.
Garmon also thought the Panther hitters did a good job of playing small ball early.
“We built the lead off of small ball, but we didn’t go back to that later on like we should have,” Garmon said. “When you put the ball in play, something happens.”
Sand Rock (1-8) scored two runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to make it a 9-2 game. Spring Garden got those two runs back in the top of the sixth inning, but then the Wildcats sent 10 batters to the plate in the bottom half of the inning and scored four times to pull within 11-6.
Spring Garden reliever Zack Scogin retired the Wildcats in order in the bottom of the seventh for the final.
“They didn’t quit. They battled for sure,” Garmon said of Sand Rock. “They did a good job of not giving up. Their coaches were encouraging them the whole time to stay in it. They battled back and made it a ball game.”
“They don’t quit, but if we can ever start (better), we could be a decent ball team,” Sand Rock coach Lucas McMichen said. “We started feeling a little hope coming back. The guys started putting the bat on the ball better. They haven’t quit in any ball games. It’s just we get behind early and then make dumb mistakes.”
Ben Baker led the Panthers at the plate by going 3-for-4 with a run and a RBI. Ellzey helped himself at the plate by going 2-for-3 with a walk and a RBI. Scogin was also 2-for-3 with a walk and a run. Hayes Guthrie was 2-for-3 with a double. Joel Hunter went 2-for-4 with two runs. Clayton Sadler was 2-for-5 with two runs and two RBIs.
Eli Bates doubled, scored a run, and drove in two. Brady Ruark had a hit and scored twice. Jake Marlow drove in a run.
Cooper Tucker and Morgan Tucker both had a pair of hits for Sand Rock. One of Morgan Tucker’s hits was a double. He also walked and drove in a pair of runs. Cooper Tucker scored a run.
Brycen Murphy had a hit, a run, and a RBI. Ryker Woodall singled, walked, and drove in a run. Bailey Martin finished with a hit.
Ezra Robison suffered the loss after working the first inning. He gave up six earned runs on six hits with a walk and a strikeout.
Murphy and Grayson Lane worked three innings each in relief for the Wildcats. Murphy allowed three earned runs on four hits with a walk and four strikeouts. Lane surrendered two unearned runs on five hits with no walks and three strikeouts.
