Pioneer hurler shuts down Riverdale
|
Killian, a sophomore, hurled his second one-hitter in as many weeks, as the Pioneers downed Riverdale 6-0 to split a two-day series.
The young right-hander carried a no-hitter through 5-2/3 innings, and finished with a whopping 13 strikeouts balanced against five walks to pick up the shutout and improve his personal record to 2-1.
“Colby’s got the mentality that he’s just going to come at you with his best stuff,” said Pioneer coach J.W. Holt. “He’s going to challenge you to try and hit it if you can.
“There was some situations he had to pitch his way out of tonight, and he did a great job at that.”
One such situation came in the fifth, when Killian walked Chad Hunter to start the inning and then hit the Warriors’ Pleas Wright to put runners at first and second.
But the Pioneer hurler — who according to Riverdale coach Buddy Powers hovered around 90 miles per hour on the Warriors’ radar gun all night — pitched his way out of the mid-game jam, fanning the Warriors’ top three batters to end the inning.
“He got stronger as the game went on,” Holt said, “and that’s one reason he stayed out there, even when his pitch count started getting high.”
Justin Jones ended Killian’s bid for the no-no, slapping a single to center field with two out in the sixth. But the hit not only didn’t faze Killian, it seemed to cause renewed energy in the sophomore, who struck out the next three batters he faced before getting RHS leadoff man Dusty Gill to fly out to end the game.
“It was a very fun night,” Holt said. “It’s especially exciting to see these kids play like they did, and it’s a great way for them to know what they can accomplish when they put it all together.”
The Pioneers put it together offensively, as well, spreading the wealth at the plate to the tune of seven hits. Chase McGee, Jacob Bratcher, Joey Haston, Josh Bratcher, Todd Gilley, Steven Ehrhardt and Nick Cantrell all came through with base knocks in the win, and the Pioneers jumped out to an early lead they would never relinquish.
Haston drove in Jacob Bratcher with a single in the first, and Josh Bratcher followed with a two-run double, bringing home Dylan Stephens and Haston for a 3-0 lead.
Josh Bratcher reached on an error in the bottom of the fourth, took second on an Ehrhardt single and third on a Nick Cantrell bunt, then scored on a grounder from McGee.
A leadoff double from Gilley in the sixth set the stage for a two-run frame, as Ehrhardt followed with a walk. Cantrell singled up the middle to bring home Gilley, and Ehrhardt came in on a hit from Jacob Bratcher for the Pioneers’ final run.
• Tuesday night in Murfreesboro, it was the Warriors’ Will Underland who came away with the dominant pitching performance.
Underland fanned 10 Pioneers and faced only 26, as the Warriors won 3-1 while allowing only four WCHS hits.
Haston was the hard-luck loser for the Pioneers, as he struck out five of the 25 batters he faced.
The Warriors struck four two runs in the third, when Gill drove in Chason Choate and Chad Hunter, who had reached on an error. Riverdale’s other run came from a solo homer from Clint Alexander in the sixth.
The Pioneers’ only run on the night came in the fourth inning, when Tyler Herriman brought in McGee with a sacrifice bunt.
Warren County’s record now stands at 4-8 overall and 2-2 in district play, while Riverdale is at 8-3 overall, and 3-1 in the league standings.