METTER — Southeast Bulloch starting pitcher Fisher Strickland struck out 10 batters in five innings and Ryan Burroughs went 2-for-3 with a home run and two RBI’s — and crossed the plate twice himself — but it was not enough to get by Metter as the Tigers won 8-6 and increased their winning streak to nine straight on Friday night.
Strickland pitched three no-hit innings during his five innings of work, but two big rallies were all the Tigers needed to overcome the Yellow Jacket offense.
Metter (10-5, 6-1) got on the board in the bottom of the second when — trailing 1-0 — pitcher Jamie Roberts drilled a solo shot over the left field fence to lead off the inning and tie the game. Later in the inning, with runners on first and second, Jeremy Bass grounded a 1-1 pitch to Yellow Jacket shortstop David McCarthy that proved to be too hot to handle, and Tiger Blake Williams scored to give Metter a 2-1 lead. Later, after a balk moved runners to second and third, Jonathan Cobb slapped a two run single that would top off the four-run inning.
Southeast Bulloch (6-6, 2-4) was able to claw back into the game after putting up one run in the third and two more in the fourth. Strickland scored one of his two runs on a wild pitch in the third and Ryan Burroughs tied the game at 4-4 when with one on and two out he took the first pitch of the at-bat and lined it over the left field fence. Strickland pitched no-hit innings in the third and fourth striking out four during the span.
The Yellow Jackets took a brief lead in the fifth when Strickland scored his second run on the RBI single by Cory Ward, but the Tigers finally answered with a three-run inning in the bottom of the fifth. After back-to-back strikeouts, a Derek Linsey bloop single got things started. Another single and a walk loaded the bases for a two-out bases-loaded Williams triple that scored three and gave Metter a 7-5 lead. The rally helped return some of Metter’s confidence on the offensive side of the ball.
“We’re not a strong-hitting team right now,” said MHS coach Don Mims. “So we have to try to put some things together ourselves. It depends on our defense and strong pitching.”
The Yellow Jackets stranded eight runners over the course of the game, and could not take advantage of several situations with runners in scoring position.
“I was really proud of the guys,” said Yellow Jacket coach Stephen Hoyle. “They kept battling. (Metter) got up on us, and we just battled back. We kept battling and we never gave up. We kept trying to put them on and we were just missing that one key hit. I think we had a chance several times — we left several runners on base today. We strung some good hits together and manufactured some runs — like I like to do — and I think if we got one key hit here, one key hit there, the game could have been ours.”
Everything seems to be going right for Metter these days. After starting the season 1-5, the Tigers have won nine straight, and the young team seems to be gelling as it gains experience.
“We’ve got a bunch of young kids and they are starting to learn how to play,” said Mims. “We made a lot of mistakes — especially early — and we’re still making mistakes, but you can see them getting better. That’s what it’s all about. We hope at some point we’ll be a pretty good ball club.”
The Tigers will return to action on Wednesday when they take a week-long break from region games to go out-of-region during Masters week. They will travel to Dublin to take on Dublin High.
Southeast Bulloch will hit the diamond when they travel out of region to take on Johnson on Monday at 4 p.m.
Matt Yogus can be reached at (912) 489-9404.
Strickland pitched three no-hit innings during his five innings of work, but two big rallies were all the Tigers needed to overcome the Yellow Jacket offense.
Metter (10-5, 6-1) got on the board in the bottom of the second when — trailing 1-0 — pitcher Jamie Roberts drilled a solo shot over the left field fence to lead off the inning and tie the game. Later in the inning, with runners on first and second, Jeremy Bass grounded a 1-1 pitch to Yellow Jacket shortstop David McCarthy that proved to be too hot to handle, and Tiger Blake Williams scored to give Metter a 2-1 lead. Later, after a balk moved runners to second and third, Jonathan Cobb slapped a two run single that would top off the four-run inning.
Southeast Bulloch (6-6, 2-4) was able to claw back into the game after putting up one run in the third and two more in the fourth. Strickland scored one of his two runs on a wild pitch in the third and Ryan Burroughs tied the game at 4-4 when with one on and two out he took the first pitch of the at-bat and lined it over the left field fence. Strickland pitched no-hit innings in the third and fourth striking out four during the span.
The Yellow Jackets took a brief lead in the fifth when Strickland scored his second run on the RBI single by Cory Ward, but the Tigers finally answered with a three-run inning in the bottom of the fifth. After back-to-back strikeouts, a Derek Linsey bloop single got things started. Another single and a walk loaded the bases for a two-out bases-loaded Williams triple that scored three and gave Metter a 7-5 lead. The rally helped return some of Metter’s confidence on the offensive side of the ball.
“We’re not a strong-hitting team right now,” said MHS coach Don Mims. “So we have to try to put some things together ourselves. It depends on our defense and strong pitching.”
The Yellow Jackets stranded eight runners over the course of the game, and could not take advantage of several situations with runners in scoring position.
“I was really proud of the guys,” said Yellow Jacket coach Stephen Hoyle. “They kept battling. (Metter) got up on us, and we just battled back. We kept battling and we never gave up. We kept trying to put them on and we were just missing that one key hit. I think we had a chance several times — we left several runners on base today. We strung some good hits together and manufactured some runs — like I like to do — and I think if we got one key hit here, one key hit there, the game could have been ours.”
Everything seems to be going right for Metter these days. After starting the season 1-5, the Tigers have won nine straight, and the young team seems to be gelling as it gains experience.
“We’ve got a bunch of young kids and they are starting to learn how to play,” said Mims. “We made a lot of mistakes — especially early — and we’re still making mistakes, but you can see them getting better. That’s what it’s all about. We hope at some point we’ll be a pretty good ball club.”
The Tigers will return to action on Wednesday when they take a week-long break from region games to go out-of-region during Masters week. They will travel to Dublin to take on Dublin High.
Southeast Bulloch will hit the diamond when they travel out of region to take on Johnson on Monday at 4 p.m.
Matt Yogus can be reached at (912) 489-9404.
