BASEBALL

Freshman pinch hitter Jarret Gray’s walk-off single sent the Foresters past Spring Arbor 6-5 in Crossroads League baseball Monday afternoon at Logansport High School’s Jim Turner Field. The clash is first time these two teams have done business this season as HU improves to 3-1 in league play, 7-6 overall while SAU drops to 8-16 overall, 1-3 in CL action.

Frame’s crew headed into the ninth down a run but was quick to set the stage for their dramatic ending. With one out, Collin Landrum found a gap in left-center, stole second, landed at third on Donovan Clark’s bunt for a base hit and beat the throw home on Adam Roser’s fielder’s choice for a 5-5 tie.

An out later with bases loaded, Gray stepped up to the plate for the first time on the day to rope a shot into right-center, on an 0-1 count, for the game-winner. For Gray it was his 19th plate appearance of the year and irrefutably the biggest hit of his young career.

Huntington got off to a quick start by plating a run in the first on Austin Pritchard’s sacrifice fly and then found home again in the second on Landrum’s infield RBI-single. The middle innings, however, favored the Cougars as they outscored their hosts 5-2 to grab the lead at 5-4 after seven innings of play. Their big at bat came in the fifth when they hammered out four hits for three runs.

HU’s two runs during the middle stretch came in the latter half of the fifth. After doubling down the right field line, Roser scored on Daniel Lichty’s single to a similar spot. Turf got the best of the SAU’s right fielder as he misplayed the ball allowing Lichty to wheel his way around the bases for HU’s second run of the frame.

Pitching for the Foresters was by committee. DJ Moore tossed the first five innings after which Joey Butz spent 2.1 innings on the bump before Pritchard moved from first to the mound to close out the game. The southpaw tossed the final two outs of the eighth and the ninth to claim the W, giving up a hit and two walks while striking out one. It was a gritty performance as he worked his way out of a bases loaded jam both frames.

Duncan Patterson went the distance, throwing 129 pitches, in the losing effort for SAU.

HU managed ten hits to Spring Arbor’s 13. Landrum picked up a pair of hits, an RBI and three stolen bases. Clark finished with two base pokes as well and snatching two bags. Huntington collected nine stolen bases on the afternoon.

Huntington is back at Jim Turner Field tomorrow for a doubleheader at 11:00 a.m. to wrap up the series with the Cougars.