Starling simply sterling, lifting Elkins to state

Though he is as fiery a competitor as you will find, Elkins righthander Wardell Starling had no intentions of giving in to the heat of the moment Friday night.

Kingwood tested Starling's resolve with an aggressive baserunning attack in the first inning, but Starling proved up to the challenge, leading the Knights to a 9-1 victory at the Reliant Astrodome and another state tournament berth.

Starling (11-0) surrendered just three hits, as Elkins (33-1) swept the Class 5A Region III final series and claimed its third consecutive regional crown.

"It worked out almost the way you would script it," said Elkins coach Rick Carpenter, referencing Starling's brilliant outing on the heels of James Loney's one-hitter Thursday. "(Starling) is definitely one cool customer. He got out of two bases-loaded jams in a game we won earlier this year, and that's just an example of the things that he does."

The Mustangs (29-10) jumped on Starling with back-to-back singles from Lance Pendleton and David Hoke in the bottom of the first. Both runners advanced on a double steal before Starling hit Michael Flower with a pitch to load the bases.

Designated hitter Ryan McQuarrie followed with an unsuccessful squeeze attempt, but Pendleton somehow eluded the tag of Starling and scored after getting caught in a rundown. Carpenter protested the call to no avail and, moments later, Hoke charged down the line after McQuarrie whiffed on another bunt attempt. Hoke and catcher Josh Plumaj collided, with the confrontation sparking the Knights as Starling closed the frame with a fly out.

"They were trying to get aggressive because they were struggling swinging the bats," Starling said. "They knew they had to try and get us off guard and hopefully squeeze in a run, but we didn't let that bother us. They got one and we struck back and did our job."

Said Carpenter: "For him to gather himself and only give up one run, that was huge."

After Loney led off the second with a bunt single, Chad Huffman smacked a ground-rule double off Kingwood lefthander Michael Hopper (6-3). Kelley Shearer followed with an RBI single and, after a Plumaj sacrifice, Spencer Jackson brought home Huffman and Shearer with a double to center. David Leatherwood made it 4-1 with a run-scoring single.

The three-run cushion was all Starling needed, for he ripped through the Kingwood lineup like a buzz saw. He retired the next eight batters he faced before giving up a benign single to McQuarrie with two away in the fourth. Elkins helped Starling's cause by playing fabulous defense, as third baseman Bryan Sullivan made a sparkling dive to snare a liner in the second before center fielder Peter Ives' diving grab in the fourth.

"We came out here expecting to win," Sullivan said. "We played good defensively."

McQuarrie would be the last Kingwood baserunner. Starling struck out the side in the sixth before turning in a perfect seventh, sending Elkins to its fifth state tournament in eight years by inducing Mike Buckalo to fly out to Ives for the final out.