Broome did work and so did the Walker Valley bats, as the ’Stangs jumped out early and never looked back on the way to a 7-0 final.
“Our guys hit the ball well this afternoon. We put some good defense behind a really good starting effort by Jared. I’m very pleased. Any time you can get a sweep in this district, especially against Cleveland it’s always sweet,” said Walker Valley head coach Joe Shamblin.
The Mustangs came out of the gate strong for a second straight game, opening scoring up in the bottom of the second to grab the lead and the momentum.
Josh Poole kicked things off for Walker Valley, getting the party started with a two-out base on balls. Austin Scott came into the game to run for Poole and promptly advanced on a Raider wild pitch.
Broome followed Poole’s example with his own walk, and that’s when Bobby Towne stepped up, driving in both base runners with a two RBI double.
But, Walker Valley wasn’t done quite yet. Matthew Simmons hopped on the merry-go-round, trading places with Towne for his own RBI double. Chris Caffrey liked what he saw so much he decided he’d do the exact same thing.
When the dust settled, the Mustangs had plated four runs on three hits and two walks to gain all the lead they would need.
“Once again we got down early, and I felt like we kind of quit out there. We just laid down. That speaks a lot about our youth and inexperience. We can’t just hang our heads. We need to battle back better instead of letting it get us down,” said Raider head coach Ted Carson.
Cleveland tried to answer in the top of the third when leadoff man Nick Miller reached safely on an error. A two-out single by Tyler Shugart put Miller 90 feet away, but the Raiders left the scoring opportunity on the bags.
Patience at the plate paid off for the home team as the Mustangs drew four walks and Broome posted an RBI single on the way to a two-run bottom of the third, putting them up 6-0.
Through the last four innings Broome only faced 13 Raider batters. He finished the game with five strikeouts and allowed just two hits.
“Jared was lights out for us today. He only gave up a couple hits. It was just what the doctor ordered,” stated Shamblin.
Walker Valley struck one more time, plating a run in the bottom of the fourth. Logan Longwith was seemingly caught in a pickoff attempt at second base with Logan Russell at third. Russell took off toward home, pulling the potential pickoff into a play at the plate that resulted in the final Mustang run.
A sliver lining for Cleveland was senior Jesse Jones taking the mound in relief, giving the Raiders 4 1/3 innings of two-hit ball and ringing up four Walker Valley batters.
“This was just Jesse’s second outing. We’re trying to work him in since he got in a little late because of wrestling. He did a really good job once he got in there for us,” stated Carson.
Up next, both squads will participate in tournaments over the spring break. The Mustangs will be making their annual trip to South Carolina, and the Raiders will participate in the Pounder Classic at Chattanooga Central and Hixson.
MUSTANGS 7, RAIDERS 0
Cleveland 000 000 0 — 0 2 1
Walker Valley 0421 000 0 — 7 7 1
WP: Jared Broome 7 IP, 5 Ks, 1 BB, 2 H, 0 ER. LP: Jake Wyrick 2.6 IP, 2 Ks, 8 BB, 4 H, 6 ER. 2B: Bobby Towne, Matthew Simmons, Chris Caffrey 2 (WV). RBI: Towne 2, Simmons 2, Caffrey, Broome, . Records: Cleveland 5-5, 2-2 District 5-AAA; Walker Valley 5-4, 5-1 District 5-AAA.
