Post 11 wins marathon slugfest

By Ryan Hanchett
Published in Sports on June 1, 2011 1:46 PM

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MOUNT OLIVE -- In a game that featured 34 total hits, Cody Davis got the one base knock that mattered most.

Davis singled home the winning run in the bottom of the eighth inning and Wayne County Post 11 hung on for a 15-14 win over Cary Post 67 in American Legion baseball action on Tuesday at Scarborough Field.

The game featured 10 different pitchers and took nearly four hours to complete.

"It wasn't the prettiest thing in the world but it goes down as a 'W'," said Wayne County assistant coach Jackson Massey. "We were able to battle back from some early adversity and show that we are capable of winning any way possible."

After Post 67 jumped out to an 7-1 lead in the first two innings, the Post 11 bats finally came to life.

Kevin Wise belted a solo home run in the third inning. Zack Mozingo and Jonathan Taylor delivered back-to-back base hits which resulted in another run and kept Post 11 within striking distance.

Wayne County (4-1 overall) broke the game open in the fourth inning and took the lead with a six-run outburst.

Tyler Gainey came through with a two-run single and Taylor added a two-run base hit of his own to cap the rally. Post 11 added five more runs in the fifth frame. A two-run triple by Wise and an RBI double by Mozingo provided the inning highlights as Post 11 grabbed a 14-8 lead.

"I thought Kevin Wise really had some good at-bats especially early in the game," said Massey. "He was the guy that kind of gave us a spark offensively."

But the game was far from over.

Cary plated three runs in the seventh inning as Stephen McKinney delivered a two-run single and David Hamm scored on a wild pitch. Post 71 tied the game at 14-14 in the top of the eighth when Will Yoder and McKinney came through with RBI base hits.

All of that action set up Davis' heroics in the bottom of the eighth.

Gainey drew a free pass with one out and advanced to third on a base hit by Hunter Barnett. Davis promptly gave his team the final lead of the night with a single to left field.

Cameron Taylor retired the side in order in the top of the ninth to earn the win on the pitcher's mound.

"We had some of our relievers in the game for extended innings again tonight and we really can't have that going forward," said Massey. "Zach Beachem gave us 60 pitches for the second time in a week and that is a lot to ask from a bullpen."

Wayne County entertains Wilson on Thursday.