Triad 11, Legacy Christian 5
A balanced offensive attack throughout the lineup helped Triad pull away for an 11-5 victory over Legacy Christian on Saturday, May 16.
Legacy Christian opened the scoring in the bottom of the first after a one-out walk put the first runner aboard. A triple lined into center field brought home the game’s first run, and a following single pushed the Knights in front 2-0 after one inning.
The Cardinals answered in a huge way in the second.
Ty Botkins led off the inning with a double, followed by an Alex May single to put runners on the corners. Botkins later scored on a passed ball to cut the deficit in half before two straight hit batters loaded the bases with nobody out. Triad then took advantage of back-to-back catcher’s interference calls, forcing home two runs to grab a 3-2 lead. Waylin Holtsberry capped the inning with a two-run double to center as the Cardinals surged ahead 5-2.
The Knights picked up a run in the bottom of the second on a two-out RBI double to cut the lead to two, but Holtsberry settled in once he took over on the mound for Triad. After allowing that second-inning run, he retired seven straight batters over the next two innings while recording four strikeouts and forcing multiple ground-ball outs.
Triad’s offense came alive again late, scoring three runs in both the fifth and seventh innings.
In the fifth, Duncan Funderburgh singled to lead off the inning. After two quick outs, George Hartman doubled and Jayden Blackburn walked to load the bases. Alfred Johnson then delivered the biggest hit of the game, ripping a bases-clearing triple into center field to extend the Cardinals’ lead to 8-3.
Legacy Christian added single runs in both the fifth and sixth innings on RBI base hits, but Triad answered with another three-run frame in the seventh to put the game away.
With two outs, Connor Hayes and JJ Roberts delivered back-to-back singles before Holtsberry drove home Hayes with another RBI hit. Funderburgh followed with a two-run double to score both Roberts and Holtsberry and stretch the lead to 11-5.
Triad’s defense closed out the game with a 9-3 double play after Alex May made a catch in right field and fired to first baseman Botkins to double off the runner who failed to tag up.
Holtsberry earned the win in relief, pitching the final six innings while allowing three runs, two earned, on seven hits and two walks with eight strikeouts.
Johnson led the Cardinals offensively with four RBIs, while Holtsberry added two hits and three RBIs. Funderburgh also finished with two hits and two RBIs, while Roberts and May each collected two hits.
Triad improves to 7-16 and will close the regular season on the road against Yellow Springs.
