After winning Thursday night against Burkburnett 10-6 in a best of three series, the Wildcats (20-9-1) were poised to take it all Friday in a two games but had to go the distance in a double header at Jacksboro High School, taking the series 2-1.
Thursday night the Wildcats started slow scoring one run in the first off of singles by Aaron Williams and Steven Murchinson. {{more}}
The score stayed 1-0 until the top of the 5th when Kennedale had another one run inning, off of two walks and then a single by Josh Taylor. Taylor on the mound did a good job of keeping Burkburnett off the base paths through the first four innings allowing no runs, two hits with 5 strike outs.
But in the bottom of the 5th with the score at 2-0, Burkburnett struck back scoring 4 times with a double, three singles, a walk and a Kennedale error.
That was the spark the Cats needed apparently, answering with their bats in the top of the 6th scoring seven runs. Ryan Box started the onslaught with a single followed by two doubles (Tyler Perez and Brett Hunt) and three more singles (Cody Bossaller, Taylor and Murchinson). Bossaller and Shane O?Connor reached on groundball errors. Box who had started it all, added another single to cap off the hits in the 6th, putting the Cats ahead for good at 9-4. Kennedale scored again in the 7th after a double by Davis Walsh and a sacrifice by O?Connor.
Burkburnett tried to mount a comeback in the bottom of the 7th but could manage only one run losing 10-6.
Friday night, in the early game with the first pitch at 5 p.m., the Wildcats hoped to finish early and go home but Burkburnett won 3-2. Burkburnett scored two runs in the top of the first and then made sure the Cats didn?t cross home for the next three innings.
Austin Eggleston was tagged with the loss. He walked one, struck out four, and allowed three runs.
The Wildcats got one-run rallies in the fourth inning and the fifth. In the fourth, Kennedale scored on an RBI single by Gunnar Hunt, scoring Brett Hunt. In the fifth, Aaron Williams after walking, scored on a groundball (Ryan Box) error knotting the game at 2-2.
Burkburnett broke the tie in the seventh with one run. For Kennedale it was 3 up and 3 down in the sixth and seventh, giving Burkburnett the win 3-2.
With the nightcap starting 30 minutes later, the Wildcats were frustrated, angry and cornered and were in no mood to be messed with. The Cats came out swinging in the final game of the best of three playoff series scoring 8 runs over the first three innings while allowing a single run by Burkburnett.
Burkburnett would score only one more run while the Wildcats tack on 5 more, winning the game 13-2 in 6 innings.
Brett Hunt struck out 15, allowing two earned runs, six hits and three walks over six innings.
Kennedale bats sang in the game with 13 hits. Shane O?Connor had went 3 for 5 with an RBI, Taylor was 2 of 4 with a RBI, Ryan Box and Brett Hunt were 2 of 4 with 2 RBI?s each, Tyler Perez was a perfect 2 for 2 with one RBI and both TJ Aguilar (RBI) and Gunnar Hunt recorded singles.
With the bid-district win the Wildcats move on to area play next week against the winner of the Stephenville/Gainesville series. UILBaseball playoff brackets
Game Three Stats – JoinGame Changer for latest on Wildcat Baseball
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 R H E KNDL 4 2 2 0 3 2 13 13 1 BRK 1 0 0 1 0 0 2 6 6 W: Brett Hunt
Pitches-Strikes: Brett Hunt 114-75
Groundouts-Flyouts: Brett Hunt 1-1
First pitch strikes-Batters faced: Brett Hunt 11-27
