Northpoint beats Rebels, Eagles to force final regional game
Photo: Northpoint’s Cade Freeze ranges to his left to make a play during Monday’s West Region playoff victory over Tipton-Rosemark. (Bob Bakken/desotocountynews.com)
A trophy, a number one seed, and a first-round bye in the TSSAA Division 2-A state baseball playoffs is on the line Tuesday night, May 9, when Evangelical Christian School (ECS) returns to Southaven to play Northpoint Christian at 7:30 p.m.
Northpoint hung on for a 7-6 victory over ECS Monday night, May 8 in the West Region final round, tagging the first loss of the tournament on the Eagles, a team that opened the regional with a 3-2 win over the Trojans last Thursday, May 4. Monday’s victory also forced the winner-take-all championship game Tuesday night.
But before the battle with the Eagles could occur, the Trojans had to get through the other team that was left Monday in the tournament. Tipton-Rosemark joined Northpoint Monday as the teams with one loss and they had to face off to determine who would play ECS in the nightcap.
Northpoint succeeded in the TRA challenge by a score of 6-3 Monday afternoon.
Against the Rebels, Northpoint took a 4-0 lead through four innings, highlighted by a three-run fourth inning that had a bases-loaded walk for a run and a two-run single by Sammy Chapman.
The Rebels came back and plated three runs of their own in the top of the fifth to get within 4-3. However, Northpoint scored twice more to seal the game when Chapman singled for a run and Conner McKnatt reached base on an infield error.
Chapman and Cade Freeze each scored twice for Northpoint in the victory. Chapman, Freeze and McKnatt each collected two base hits and Chapman drove in three RBIs.
JB Williams was the winning pitcher for the Trojans, as he struck out six and walked four in 4.2 innings pitched. Hudson Brown earned the save with two strikeouts and one hit allowed in 2.1 innings of work.
“We were able to scratch out some runs,” said Kirkpatrick. “We were also able to play some solid defense and got a really good pitching effort from JB and Hudson.”
Against ECS, the Trojans staked themselves to a 5-0 lead in their first plate appearances of the game. Being the visiting team, Northpoint took the quick lead after a two-run homer from Brown and an RBI single from Williams, who later scored on an infield fielders’ choice.
“One of the things for us in the tournament is having a fast start,” said Kirkpatrick.
The Trojans raised the margin to 6-0 in the third on a single from Cade Freeze before the Eagles started their comeback, scoring three times in the third and three more in the fourth to tie the game.
But Northpoint got the winning run it needed in the top of the fifth inning on an error during a fielder’s choice play scored McKnatt for a 7-6 lead. Defense took over after that and when a fly ball was caught by McKnatt, the game was over.
