Since returning home as champions at the Purcell Tournament, Newcastle has lost three games while winning only two. This week they prepare for the Bi-District Tournament.
The Racers lost to Mount St. Mary 2-1 on Monday, April 17 before coming back the next day for an 11-1 victory. The Racers then lost to the Calera Bulldogs twice on Friday, April 21 by the scores of 4-3 and 8-0, but Newcastle returned to action on Saturday with an 11-0 win against the Christian Heritage Crusaders.
The Racers were scheduled to play the Lindsay Leopards Tuesday, but rainy conditions cancelled that game. Bi-District and an accompanying senior night begins today (Thursday) at Newcastle. The Racers are scheduled to play Classen SAS in a three-game series to see who advances.
Against Mount St. Mary, the Rockets scored two runs in the first inning, and Newcastle could not recover. Logan Wade and Tyler Frazier each had one hit for the Racers.
On Tuesday, April 18, Taj Smith drove in four hits for the Racers on a home run in the first inning and a home run in the third inning to help lead Newcastle to the 11-1 victory over Mount St. Mary.
Newcastle had seven runs in the fourth inning, coming from James Folsom, Wade, Randy Nix, Connor Leader, and Trey Crossley. Wade was the winning pitcher for the Racers.
Nix, Smith and Jackson Schanuel all had multiple hits for Newcastle with Nix going 3-for 3 to lead the team.
Against Calera in the first game last Friday, a walk-off left the Racers on the wrong end of the 4-3 score.The game was tied at three with the Bulldogs batting in the bottom of the seventh inning when the Bulldog batter reached base on a dropped third strike.
Jackson Robertson was on the mound for Newcastle, allowing seven hits and four runs over six and two-thirds innings, while striking out 10. Alex Logan led batting with two hits. The Racers were surehanded in the field and did not commit a single error.
In the second game Friday against Calera, the Bulldogs took the lead in the first inning on a single and did not look back. Schanuel and Frazier had hits for the Racers, but the Calera offense was too much, with seven hits on the day.
The Saturday game against Christian Heritage was completely different with two Newcastle pitchers teaming up for a shut-out, and the 11-0 score. Crossley got the start for the Racers, going five and two-thirds innings, allowing zero runs on three hits, striking out five and walking one.
The Racers had 10 hits in the game with Frazier hitting four-for-five.
(Game excerpts: Powered by Narrative Science and Gamechanger Media. Copyright 2023)
