The Big Sandy Wildcats held the second annual Wildcat Baseball Tournament this last weekend. Some of the area’s best teams played in the tournament, including Hardin, Hardin-Jefferson, Buna, Trinity, Onalaska, East Chambers, Woodville, West Sabine, and Warren. The Wildcats played four games over the three-day tournament.
Big Sandy and Onalaska kicked off the tournament Thursday morning, with Onalaska taking a 7-1 contest. Big Sandy struggled offensively against Onalaska’s starting pitcher, Ty Phillips. Phillips pitched five innings, allowing only a run on one hit, and three walks, while striking out 11 batters. Colin Vann went 2-for-3 and scored a run. Trip Teel went 2-for-3 with a triple, an RBI, and scored three runs.
Big Sandy played their second game against the Trinity Tigers Thursday night, dominating them for the 11-1 win. Daniel Barker was on the mound for Big Sandy. He pitched five innings gave up a run, allowed four hits, three walks, and struck out five. The bats got hot for the Wildcats. Zack McGallion went 2-for-4 with a double, two RBIs, and a run. Barker went 1-for-4 with a triple and two runs. Trig Byrd went 1-for-1 with a bases-loaded triple, three RBIs, two runs, and a walk.
Big Sandy played Friday night against the East Chambers Buccaneers, taking a 4-1 lead into the fourth inning, but the Bucs fought their way back to tie the game at 4-4. A costly Wildcat error in the fifth allowed East Chambers to score the go-ahead run. The Wildcats failed to score in the bottom of the inning and lost a heartbreaker to the Bucs, 5-4. Wyatt Lenox started the game for Big Sandy. He pitched four innings, allowing only one earned run on five hits, five walks, and a strike out. Corbin Cude pitched an inning and struck out two batters. The Wildcats gave East Chambers four unearned runs in the game. Trig Byrd went 1-for-2 with a double, an RBI, and scored a run. Cude went 1-for-1 with a walk and an RBI.
Big Sandy’s last game of the tournament was a rematch against Onalaska, ended in another loss for Big Sandy. Onalaska got on the scoreboard early and often, scoring three runs in the first inning, four more in the second inning, and two in the third, putting Onalaska up 9-1. Big Sandy tried to mount a comeback, scoring two runs with two outs in the bottom of the fourth, but couldn’t keep the rally going in a 9-3 final. For Big Sandy, Eli Murphy went 2-for-2 with a triple and scored a run. For Onalaska, Carson Davies went 2-for-2 with an RBI and two runs. Trip Teel was 1-for-2 with a double, a walk, an RBI, and two runs. Brady Purkerson went 1-for-2 with a triple and four RBIs.
Big Sandy finished the tournament with a 1-3 record and are 2-3 on the season. Next up for the Wildcats is a challenge versus larger schools in the West Orange-Stark tournament against Hemphill, Tomball, Beaumont United, and West Orange-Stark.
