Royals ready for redemption at OFC Tourney

The Twin Rivers Royals cruised through the Ozark Foothills Conference regular season at 5-0 to earn next week’s top seed in the OFC Baseball Tournament at Three Rivers.

Royals coach Chris Newman said despite being the top seed, history hasn’t been kind to Twin Rivers but they’re looking for redemption next week in the home of the Raiders.

“We were in this spot last year and did not perform to expectations.” he said. “I believe last years failures will help us stay focused this year and we are better prepared mentally to take care of the things the we can control.”

The tournament opens on Monday with East Carter and Clearwater taking the field at noon. Naylor and Neelyville will follow at 2 p.m. The winner of Naylor and Neelyville will take on the top-seeded Royals at 2 p.m. on Tuesday while the winner of East Carter and Clearwater will take on No. 2 Greenville at noon.

Twin Rivers has outscored OFC opponents 45-2 this fall with four of those victories being shutouts as Greenville was the only team to put runs across the board on the Royals.

Newman said they’ve had to adapt this season and his team has responded when it’s needed to.

“We have dealt with several injuries to key players,” he said. “It’s a next-man-up mentality and we have given opportunities to several guys to see how our lineup works best. Here lately things have been clicking well for us but we still have the most important week left to go.”

Despite the runs they’ve put up this season, Newman said they had bats go cold at times.

Whenever that happens, the Royals have continued to stay on course and delivered, including production from a spot at the end of the lineup.

“We have had several players in hitting slumps this fall and the guys have done a great job to continue grinding out at bats and trust the process,” he said. “Lately at bats have resulted in more success as a team.

“Kendell Austin has stepped up for us in No. 9 hole. He has been a weapon for us at the bottom of our lineup and made the most of his opportunities.”

For Newman and the Royals, the key next week is to remember the basics.

“We need to continue executing fundamental baseball to have a chance next week,” he said. “In tournament play, the most fundamentally solid teams usually come out on top.”

The championship game is scheduled for 2 p.m. on Thursday with the first pitch of the third-place game starting at noon. All games will be played at Three Rivers.