By Johnny Sanders, Sports Editor
SPRINGVILLE – The Springville Tigers are in the midst of a very impressive baseball season and the latest victim was the Ardmore Tigers. Regardless of the outcome, Tigers were going to win this one, but the Springville version would use great pitching and great defense in the field to eliminate Ardmore and keep their season alive.
The first game the two played on Friday would be a 2-1 defensive battle between the Tiger teams. Ardmore would get a run in the first and hold the 1-0 lead until the bottom of the third where Alex Holland would hit a sacrifice to the pitcher that would bring Kade Willis to the plate to tie the game at one. The game would stay knotted at one until the bottom of the fifth inning. The bases were loaded and Jake Conner was at the plate. Conner would simply be patient and earn the walk, bringing Willis across the plate once more, this time for the winning run. Carter Samuelson went the distance, allowing two hits and a single run to go with six strikeouts on the day.
In game two, Springville did pretty much the same thing on defense and got a bit more help at the plate to secure a 4-0 victory and earn an extra day of rest on Saturday before round two. Springville scored two in the top of the first inning when Holland hit a single that brought home Ryan King and Grant Martinez to make it 2-0 right out of the gate. A passed ball in the second would bring home Nigel Laws to make it 3-0. The final run of the game would come on a sacrifice fly that brought Tanner Oakes to the plate. Holland picked up the win with six innings pitched, allowing three hits and no runs and striking out five. King relieved Holland, pitching the final inning and allowing not hits nor runs and striking out two. Holland also got the job done at the plate driving in two RBI.
Springville now finds themselves an impressive 25-9 headed into round two where they will take on Southside-Gadsden beginning this Friday with a possible tie breaker on Saturday.