Tigers remain hot with sweep of New Site
By Staff
Mike Self, Franklin County Times
Red Bay kept its early-season roll going strong on Tuesday, sweeping a pair of games at home against New Site (MS).
The Tigers (7-1) trailed 4-1 in the first game before erupting for 10 runs in the bottom of the fourth inning on their way to a 14-4 win.
Morgan Stanfield had two hits in the big fourth inning, including a two-run double, and Stephen Prestage also had two hits and two RBIs in the frame.
Nicholas Taylor had an RBI triple, and Brandon Brown, Ely Cox and Dillon Massey added run-scoring hits in the fourth.
Brown later had a two-run double in the bottom of the sixth as Red Bay scored three times to end the game.
Stanfield earned the win, allowing eight hits and striking out six in a complete game. At the plate, he had three of Red Bay's 17 hits and drove in three runs.
Prestage and Nathan Hopkins also had three hits apiece, and Brown, Cox and Massey each had two hits.
The Tigers cruised to an 11-0 win in the second game as Taylor struck out 10 and allowed just three hits in a five-inning complete game.
Taylor also went 2-for-2 with two RBIs, and Hopkins was 2-for-3. Andy Thorn had a hit and two RBIs, and Matthew Patterson added a hit and an RBI.
The Tigers will look to extend their four-game win streak tonight at home against Speake.
Red Bay coach Donnie Hastings said pitching has been the key to his team's strong start.
"We're not doing anything fancy on the mound," he said. "Our guys aren't blowing people away, but they're doing a good job of throwing strikes. So far we're not giving other teams a lot of extra baserunners."
The Tigers started 11-4 last season before dropping their final eight games. Hastings said hard work will be the key to sustaining this year's hot start.
"We just have to keep working hard at practice," he said. "Before the season started we weren't able to get on the field very much for more than a day or two at a time, because of the weather. Every time we got back out there after a couple of days off, it felt like we were playing catch-up. We just have to focus on continuing to get better."
