SODDY-DAISY — Bradley Central picked up a quick lead with a run in the top of the first inning but then couldn’t get around the bases again as Soddy-Daisy exploded in each of its four at bats Monday night on the Trojans’ home diamond.
The victory kept Soddy-Daisy (18-11, 8-3) tied with Ooltewah (17-10, 8-3) atop the District 5-AAA standings with only one regular season game left.
Weather permitting, the Trojans are scheduled to visit the McKenzie Baseball Complex this evening, while Ooltewah, an 8-6 winner over McMinn County on Monday, will travel to Athens. The two teams are battling for the top seed in next week’s District 5-AAA Tournament at Walker Valley.
After falling behind Bradley before even coming to bat, Soddy-Daisy broke out the big sticks in the bottom of the fist, putting three runs on the board.
The Trojans tacked on a single run in their second at bat, then two more in the third before posting a 5-spot in the fourth frame to put the run-rule into effect.
The home team belted out nine hits and took advantage of three Bear errors. Talon Harris and Lee University signee James Fowlkes both “went yard” for the Trojans. It was Harris’ 16th home run of the season and the 17th for Fowlkes.
Harris and Jake Leffew both went 2-for-3 in the contest, while Damo DeMatteo was 2-for-2. Leffew, who had a double, and DeMatteo both drove in two runs.
Bradley managed just three hits off Trojan hurler Hadyn Bailey, with senior Kody Ward stroking a double in the Bear effort.
Polk County 24
Sweetwater 2
The boys from Benton scored 13 times before Sweetwater came to bat Monday in Monroe County.
University of Tennessee signee Jared Allen tossed a two-hitter to improve his pitching record to 5-1 on the season, plus he and Cleveland State signee Michael Hargove both homered in the victory.
Ten of Polk’s 17 hits went for extra bases as Alex Akins and Collin Wimberley, who went 3-for-4 on the day, had a pair of doubles each.
Brock Raper, Tyler Lee, Justin Webb and Justin Brown each had a two-bagger for Polk. Akins and Raper both went 2-for-3 with two RBIs apiece. Javan Simpson went 2-for-2 in the winning effort.
Polk County (15-8, 3-3 District 5-AA) will host Sweetwater today at 5 p.m. to complete the home-and-home series.
TROJANS 11, BEARS 1
Bradley Central 100 00 — 1 3 3
Soddy-Daisy 312 5x — 11 9 0
WP: Hadyn Bailey (4-1) 5 IP, 3 H. LP: Jordan Whitmire. HR: Talon Harris, James Fowlkes (SD). 2B: Kody Ward (BC); Jake Leffew (SD). Records: Bradley Central 10-21, 1-10 District 5-AAA; Soddy-Daisy18-11, 8-3 District 5-AAA.
POLK COUNTY 24, SWEETWATER 2
Polk County (13)03 62 — 24 17 1
Sweetwater 200 00 — 2 2 4
WP: Jaed Allen (5-1). LP: Dylan Rollins. HR: Jared Allen, Michael Hargrove (PC). 2B: Alex Akins 2, Collin Wimberley 2, Justin Webb, Tyler Lee, Justin Brown, Brock Raper (PC). Records: Polk County 15-8, 3-3 District 5-AA.
