Big seventh inning lifts Paxton over Gators

BAKER – Paxton sent 14 batters to the plate and scored 10 runs in the seventh inning to break open a 3-3 game as the Bobcats beat Baker 13-4.

For six innings starting pitchers Zach Forehand of Paxton (2-0) and Christian Mainor of the Gators (2-4) battled each other pitch for pitch putting up strikingly similar lines.

Forehand went five and two-thirds innings. Mainor went six.

Both pitchers gave up five hits and three runs.

Forehand had the edge in control walking four Gator batters, but two were intentional. Mainor walked four Bobcats and hit another with a pitch.

Mainor had the edge in power numbers striking out 12 to Forehand’s six.

So when all was said and done relief pitching was the difference.

Drew Cawthon took the mound to replace Forehand with two out and a runner on base and was able to get out of the inning without further damage.

Cawthon did give up a run and a pair of Gator hits in the seventh, but by that time there a comfortable lead to work with after Anthony Heath and Dylan Kersey were unable to complete the strong effort Mainor started.

Heath, a lefty, opened the seventh on the mound waked Forehand, Colby Cook and Will Hutchinson before being lifted for Kersey.

Cawthon greeted Kersey with a run-scoring single to open the floodgates.
Before the inning was over Cawthon would have another run-scoring hit and Marcus Bradley, Ryan Gilbert, Jesse

Crawford and Forehand would single in runs as well. Hutchinson added a two-run double of his own in the big frame.

“We had a couple of mistakes with us just coming off basketball,” Bobcat coach Jeff Bradley said. “But we kept it close enough to win.

“Christian Mainor and Zach Forehand battled through six and then we turned it over to our other guys and we were able to get to their guys (relievers) some.”

Before the Paxton fireworks the teams had battled.

Baker drew first blood as Josh Lawson led off the game drawing a walk and later scored on a Colton Henry sacrifice fly.

Crawford and Cook scored and Cook and Dan Geoghagan drove in runs in the Bobcat third as Paxton moved in front 2-1.

The Gators regained the lead in the bottom of the inning as Lawson and Henry scored on a double off the bat of Austin Derrick.

A double by A.J. Neal in the sixth scored Bradley as Paxton tied the game.

Every Bobcat batter had a least one hit.
Cawthon, Bradley and Hutchinson had two hits each.

Lawson had three hits and scored three runs to lead the Baker attack. He reached safely in all four of his plate appearances. Austin also had two hits for the Gators.

Baker coach Gary Taylor refused to second-guess himself about pulling Mainor as the junior had thrown 112 pitches.

“Christian did a great job,” Taylor said. “We just have to have some guys that can come in with confidence behind him and we didn’t have that tonight.”