Fighting Squirrels, Jackson Senior Legion split doubleheader

Jackson Post 158 American Senior Legion baseball coach Mark Lewis likes the direction his team is heading, but he still wants to see more as Jackson split a doubleheader with the Charleston Fighting Squirrels, winning 8-3 and dropping an 8-5 decision Monday in Jackson.

"I like where we're headed, but we've got a lot of work to do," Lewis said. "Right now in June, we play a lot of kids, try to get everyone in there and kind of see what we have. It's different in the summertime. You play so many ball games, so the number of pitchers that you have combined with the innings you have to get them on the mound, bullpens are only going to be so good. You've got to get them facing batters and get them some results."

In the first game, Jackson took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first when Jake Edwards scored on an RBI single by Ben Maudie. After Ty Householder scored on Cameron Clark's groundout to even the score at 1-1 in the top of the second, Post 158 took the lead for good in the bottom of the frame, thanks to an RBI single by Tristan Burdette and a sacrifice fly by Edwards that pushed Jackson's lead to 3-1.

"Charleston's one of the best teams around. ... I know they've played a lot of ball the last couple of games, and that's tough," Lewis said. "You schedule them and sometimes you get rained out and you can't get them in, and all of a sudden it doesn't rain and you've got all those games scheduled and you've got to go with it."

Ryan Harvey led off the bottom of the third with a single and stole second before reaching home on an error at second base, pushing Post 158's lead to 4-1 heading into the fourth.

Jackson Legion Post 158's Tyler Howard fields a grounder in the second inning of a double-header against the Charleston Fighting Squirrels, Monday, June 15, 2015, in Jackson. (Laura Simon)

An RBI double by Wyatt Pratt trimmed the Fighting Squirrels' lead to 4-2 in the top of the fourth, but a wild pitch and RBI singles by Jon Schumer and Harvey extended Jackson's lead to 7-2.

Lewis was pleased with the efficiency of his team's offense, scoring in each of the first five innings and stranding only five runners all game.

"I thought the offense was good. They took good at-bats. We were able to take good at-bats with traffic on the bases. We have struggled with that a bit, so it was good to see that," Lewis said. "... We were fortunate right there to kind of cash in with all the traffic on the bases. A couple nights ago, we had the bases loaded and we didn't come through, and that's just baseball right there."

Pratt started on the mound and took the loss for Charleston. He went 3 1/3 innings and had one strikeout and five walks, four of which resulted in runs. Pratt gave up six hits and seven runs -- all earned. Blake Wolferding pitched 2 2/3 innings of relief, giving up two hits and one earned run.

"Wyatt was a little wild," Charleston coach Michael Minner said. "We put a couple guys on, and we've just got to be sharper. You mix a couple walks and a couple hits and a couple misplayed balls, and then it gets ugly."

Pratt finished 2 for 3 with a double to lead the Fighting Squirrels' offense. Charleston stranded 10 runners in the game.

Jackson Legion Post 158's Nathan Hurst scores in the second inning of a double-header against the Charleston Fighting Squirrels, Monday, June 15, 2015, in Jackson. (Laura Simon)

"We had some guys on the bases, and we just couldn't come up with the big hit," Minner said. "We ran ourselves out of a couple innings, but ultimately what we're trying to do is find the right mix that's going to make us the most competitive in the postseason. We told the guys that every day is a tryout, and we're trying to find out who are guys are going to be, ultimately those guys that'll be there in the end for us."

Tyler Slinkard went the distance on the mound to earn the win for Jackson. He struck out one batter and walked four while allowing seven hits and three runs -- one earned.

"I thought he was good. I didn't think he had his best stuff," Lewis said about Slinkard. "I thought the first inning he struggled, and then the second, third and fourth, he showed something. He kind of came back, and then with the lead, we were able to extend him and kind of keep him in there.

"He lost it for a little bit and kind of came back, so he got out of a performance where I didn't think he had his best stuff. But he did well enough to stay in the ball game."

Burdette was 2 for 2 with a double and two RBIs to lead Post 158 at the plate while Harvey finished 2 for 3.

After a three-run double by Edwards in the nightcap gave Jackson a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the second, Cameron Clark hit a two-run single in the top of the fourth to cut the Fighting Squirrels' deficit to 3-2.

Charleston Fighting Squirrels Ty Householder scores around Jackson Legion Post 158 catcher Tristen Burdette in the fourth inning of the first game of a double-header, Monday, June 15, 2015, in Jackson. (Laura Simon)

Charleston's Adam Pope delivered an RBI single to tie the game at 3-3 in the top of the sixth, and an RBI groundout by Hunter Cook and a suicide squeeze bunt by Householder gave the Fighting Squirrels a 5-3 advantage. Meanwhile, Charleston starting pitcher Blake Simmons retired 11 consecutive batters before giving up a hit in the bottom of the sixth.

Charleston scored three insurance runs off Jackson reliever Ben Maudie in the top of the seventh before Slinkard sparked a two-run rally for Post 158 in the bottom of the frame. The Fighting Squirrels' Adam Pope took the mound to relieve Simmons in the bottom of the seventh but was tossed after questioning the umpire's strike zone. Chase Urhahn replaced Pope, and despite allowing a run to score, Urhahn secured the final three outs and stranded the bases loaded to sustain the victory for Simmons.