The Seminary Bulldogs put themselves behind the eight ball Saturday in a must-win game against Southeast Lauderdale, committing a handful of run-scoring errors and falling behind 5-0 to the Tigers in the fifth inning. Despite a bleak outlook, the Bulldogs came alive in their half of the inning as they put up a six spot and took a 6-5 lead. However, that lead would be short-lived.
Southeast Lauderdale took advantage of a bases-loaded situation in the top of the seventh, scoring two runs with a bases-loaded walk and a single. The Bulldogs went down in order in the bottom of the frame and fell short of forcing a Game 3 in the second round Class 3A playoff series, 7-6.
To see a photo gallery of the game, click the following link: http://sports601.com/index.php/gallery-page-seminary-se-lauderdale-baseball/
Seminary finishes the season 14-11.
“We got down 5-0 there, but we fought back,” Bulldog coach Clay Bush said. “Just made a couple mistakes on ground balls, and that’s baseball for you. They got nothing to hang their head about. They had a great year. It’s part of being in the playoffs, everybody’s good at this point.”
Trace Klug started the fifth inning rally for Seminary by getting hit by a pitch. Two batters later, Mikey Jackson drove Klug’s pinch-runner in with an RBI double to get the Bulldogs on the scoreboard. After Jackson Baggett scored on a wild pitch, Landon Harvey and Logan Craft followed with two-run doubles to put the Bulldogs ahead, 6-5.
“We had a lot of fight in us,” Bush said. “We never gave up or gave in.”
An inning later, Southeast Lauderdale had their leadoff batter reach, but Seminary starting pitcher Tre Matherne got a double play, and Klug threw out a runner at first to end the frame and keep the Bulldogs in the lead.
But with two out in the seventh, the Tigers loaded the bases behind a single and two walks. They tied the game with a hit-by-pitch and took the lead off an infield single from Ryan Smith, who struck out two and got a ground ball in the bottom of the frame to close the game out and send the Tigers to the third round.
“They [Southeast Lauderdale] got a hit and ground ball here and there when they needed it,” Bush said. “That’s the way it goes…baseball.”
