Rams claim 4-1A title over Hamilton
Apr. 14—HAMILTON — The streak continues for the Vardaman Rams, as a five-run seventh inning propelled them to an 8-7 comeback win Friday to claim the Division 4-1A title for the second-straight year.
"We were down to our last out, but I kept encouraging the guys to hand it to the next guys," Vardaman coach Joshua Warren said. "We did that long enough until we were up and got the job done."
The Lions jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead after scoring two on an error, while Wyatt Baggett hit an RBI single. Bentley Hamilton and Ethan Parker drove in Vardaman's first two runs in the third and fifth innings to make it a one-run game.
Hamilton answered back in the bottom of the fifth to extend its lead as Ran Honeycutt hit a leadoff double to get things started. After Drake Pittman and Myles Self loaded the bases, a two-run single by Noah Hester, an RBI single by Evan Pounders and a steal of home increased the Lions' lead to 7-2.
After scoring a run in the sixth on a passed ball and shutting the Lions out in the bottom of the sixth, the Rams gained some momentum to make a run at a comeback in the seventh. Hamilton gave up a walk to start the inning but quickly responded by getting back-to-back outs.
A walk and an error loaded the bases for Vardaman, and Chandler Easley made it count with a bases-clearing double to center field to make it a 7-6 game.
"Chandler was due for a play like that," Warren said. "He's been struggling a little bit, but I told him to get his front side down and be on time. He's big and strong, and I knew we were in good shape when he barreled it up."
After a base hit from Mason Massey, Andrew Easley hit a two-run single to put the Rams up by one before the third out. Hamilton had a chance to come back as three runners got on base with one out in the bottom of the seventh, but a double play sealed the win for Vardaman.
"Coming in, I thought we were going to win the game and the division, but we didn't do much to help ourselves out early on," Warren said. "Hamilton is a tough team, and I thought they were going to put us away late, but our guys kept fighting."
Extra Bases
Big Inning: The Rams came back from down 7-3 with a five-run seventh inning.
Big Stat: Vardaman's Chandler Easley drove in three runs with a double in the seventh inning.
Coach Speak: "When you can't close things out, teams are going to find a way to come back. I'm proud of our guys for battling back and getting us in a position to win the division, but we just couldn't close it out." — Hamilton's Dallas Flippo
