Kingwood Mustangs versus
Pete Runnels
Friday afternoon the Kingwood
Mustangs faced District 22-5A opponent, the Port Arthur Memorial Titans, in the
third and final division game of the Pete Runnels Texas Shootout. The Mustangs entered the game 2-0 in
tournament play and in need of a victory to make the finals on Saturday.
Senior lefthander Zack
Tumlinson took the mound for the Mustangs in the top of the 1st
inning. Following a lead off single,
Tumlinson got the 2 hole hitter to ground into a 6-4 fielders choice. The crafty lefthander would then catch the 2
hole hitter off of first base with a great pickoff move. A ground out to third closed out the top of
the 1st inning.
Kingwood came out hot in the
1st inning as lead off hitter Senior third baseman Greg Gossett
doubled over the right fielder’s head.
Number two hitter Junior Josh Fountain reached on an error that moved
Gossett to third. Three hole hitter
Junior shortstop Johnny Whittleman walked to load bases. Working the count to his liking, clean up
hitter Sophomore right fielder Doug Simmons hit a 2-0 fastball over the right
field fence for a grand slam and 4-0 Mustang lead after one full inning of
play.
Tumlinson came out in the top
of the 2nd inning and was greeted by a lead off double by the Titans
cleanup hitter. The runner moved to
third base on a wild pitch. After
striking out the 5th hitter, the 6th hitter hit a grounder to
Gossett at third, who alertly cut down the lead runner at the plate by throwing
to Junior catcher John Seitz. Tumlinson
retired the side with an easy ground out back to himself.
The Mustangs resumed scoring
in the 2nd inning as lead off hitter Gossett walked, stole second,
stole third, and was scored on Fountain’s infield hit. Fountain promptly stole second and was driven
in by cleanup hitter Simmons, making the score 6-0 Kingwood after two full
innings of play.
Tumlinson got the next three
hitters to ground out to himself, Whittleman, and Gossett. Three innings would be all for Zach
Tumlinson. With a big lead, Coach David
Denny elected to save him for district play.
Overall, Tumlinson went 3 innings, gave up 2 hits, no runs, and struck
out one to record his second win of the season.
Junior pitcher/outfielder
Kyle Denny pitched the final 2 innings for Kingwood going 2 innings, giving up
2 runs on 1 hit with 3 strike outs while recording the save.
Senior center fielder Stefan
Savarino opened the bottom of the third frame by being hit by a pitch and
stealing second. Lead off hitter Gossett
was also hit by a pitch and moved to second on an infield bunt hit by Fountain
that loaded the bases. Savarino then
scored on a sacrifice fly by Whittleman.
Gossett and Fountain would advance on a wild pitch and were driven in by
Simmons – his 6th and 7th RBI’s of the game with a double
in the gap. The
The Mustangs scored again in
the bottom of the 4th inning on two out back to back doubles by
Savarino and Gossett.
Following a Titans two run
top of the 5th inning, the Mustangs came in for their final at bat
with a 10-2 lead. Simmons and Wood had back to back singles, advanced on a
passed ball, and scored on a 3 run homer by Senior designated hitter Ryan
Mize. The game ended under the 10 run
rule after 5 innings: Kingwood Mustangs
13 – Port Arthur Titans 2.
Summary of offense:
Simmons 4-4, HR – 2B – 2 runs scored – 7 RBI’s
Gossett 2-2, 2 doubles – 3 runs – 1 RBI, 2
stolen bases – on base 4-4
(walk hit by pitch)
Fountain 2-3, scored 3 runs, 1 RBI, stole 1 base
on base 4-4 (reached on 1 error and hit by pitch)
Mize 1-2, 3 run homer – on base 3-4, 1 stolen base
Savarino 1-1, double run scored – on base 2-2
Wood 1-4, 1 run scored
Whittleman 0-2, 1 run scored, 1 RBI