BENTON — The defending conference champion Benton Rangers are off to a great start in the SIRR Ohio Division, as they move to 2-0 in conference play after knocking off the West Frankfort Redbirds in a close contest. This win pushes the Rangers regular season record to 8-6.
"I think it's important for us to have a good start; especially after having a tough game last weekend,“ said coach Brett Blondi. “For them to come out yesterday and win a 3-2 game, and then come back today and win 2-1 says a lot about their character. I'm very proud of how they're playing right now.”
Logan Threlkeld set down the first two pitchers he faced with fewer than five total pitches, and then disaster struck, as Daulton O'Connor whipped up a long-ball to put the Redbirds up 1-0. As he rounded home plate to receive the adulation of his teammates, Benton protested that he had failed to touch second base on his way around the base paths. The umpires talked it out amongst themselves, and agreed, and the homer un was stricken from the record, taking the game back to square one.
Of that pivotal moment, Blondi added, “I was watching the flight of the ball, and didn't see him at first base, but then he went right in front of my field of vision at second base, and didn't even come close to touching the base. That was a no-brainer, so I was just hoping the officials were watching, and luckily they were, and they caught it."
Frankfort got back on the scoreboard in the second as Hunter Pulley was walked and then driven in by Zach Lindsey. Benton tied the game in the fourth after Cole Richardson reached on an error and came around to score. Then the Rangers took the lead in the fifth after Derek Oxford singled and then was knocked in by Richardson in the very next at bat.
The Rangers had five hits, two fewer than the losing Redbirds. Benton played a fundamentally sound game with no errors, while West Frankfort committed two errors, including one very costly base running mistake in the first inning. Oxford was 2-for-3 with one run scored, and two stolen bases. Tyson Houghland was also 2-for-3 with a stolen base. Richardson batted one run in and went 1-for-3 in the game. Threlkeld was 1-for-2 in the game, and Chase Owens 1-for-3.
Threlkeld pitched four innings for Benton, throwing 51 pitches, including 26 strikes, 25 balls, and striking out two Redbird batters. Threlkeld faced 17 batters, and allowed only two hits and one run, not counting the home run that got reversed. Ian McMahon pitched the final three innings for the Rangers, facing 12 batters, and allowing three hits. McMahon successfully kept Frankfort off the scoreboard to enable his team to get a hard-fought victory.
For West Frankfort’s offense, Kyle Saillez went 2-for-4, and Zach Lindsey was 1-for-3 with Frankfort's only RBI of the game. Also getting hits for the Redbirds was Jaryd Clark and Brandon Glass. For the Redbirds pitching, O' Connor pitched five innings, throwing 75 pitches, including 46 strikes, and recording two strikeouts. He allowed seven hits and two runs, to make him the losing pitcher of the game. Sailiez was the closer for the Redbirds, and kept the Rangers out of the hits column for the rest of the game.
"On the offensive end, I thought everybody had pretty good at bats,” added Blondi. “Derek had some really good at bats, was a nuisance on the bases, and did a really good job. Cole executed a great bunt, and Dillan lined out hard in the first. Tyson and Hamilton hit the ball hard a couple times, and Logan got a base hit for us."
"Our pitching was excellent. Logan gave us a chance and then Ian did a tremendous job coming in and making good pitches. And Caleb Rock did a great job behind the plate. He called a great game," added Blondi. On the defensive end, Blondi singled out Page and Oxford for performing exceptionally well in the infield. Oxford, who normally plays short stop, made the move to second, while Page took over at the short stop position. Blondi also noted a tremendous rolling catch from Richardson in centerfield that was one of the major highlights in the game.
The Rangers will play again this weekend at home, as they battle it out in the RBI tournament.
