No. 8 Russellville defeats Deshler 12-5

By Staff
Kim West
The No. 8 Russellville varsity baseball team capped its regular season with a 12-5 victory over Deshler as the Golden Tigers seniors were honored in a post-game ceremony Tuesday evening.
Eight seniors filled up the lineup card for Russellville, which enjoyed a strong day at the plate as freshman John Batchelor and senior Jacob Daniel each hit two-run homers to lead the Golden Tigers.
Batchelor went five innings on the mound, striking out five and giving up five runs to notch the win, while senior Trey Hooper, who started in the field at first base, earned the save.
Daniel, who drove in three runs and scored twice, and Matthew Crawford, who scored two runs, were two of five Russellville players to hit doubles. Seniors Caleb Mitchell and Corey Flanagan and sophomore Jake Ward also had doubles. Cory Trapp, Mitchell and Flanagan combined for five steals for the Golden Tigers.
Seniors Torey Baird, who is hitting a team-leading .500 this season, added a single, while Josh Smith finished with an infield single and a run scored.
Russellville opened the scoring with four runs in the first as Mitchell, Ward and Flanagan led off with doubles.
Deshler pushed across two runs in the second and third innings but Russellville responded with four more runs to lead 8-3 after three innings. The Golden Tigers added four more runs in the fourth and fifth innings, while the Tigers scored their final two runs in the top of the fifth.
The Golden Tigers will host Scottsboro in the first round of the Class 5A playoffs Friday at 4:30 p.m.