Braves beat Borden, play for share of conference title today

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Brownstown Central scored two runs in the bottom of the sixth inning to edge Borden 2-1 in a nonconference baseball game Saturday morning.

The second game was called at the beginning of the fourth inning because of the weather with the score tied 1-1.

In the first game, after the visitors used a pair of walks and a hit to take a 1-0 lead in the top of the fifth, BC used a walk, a double, an error and an infield out to put together its winning rally.

Ethan Fultz began the rally with a walk, and Levi Stahl doubled to put runners on second and third.

Grant Killey then hit a ground ball to the second baseman that was errored, allowing Fultz to score and Stahl to move up to third base. When Trent Lowery grounded out to the shortstop, Stahl raced home with what proved to be the winning run.

Braves Coach Duane Higgs said, “Whether it’s 2-1 or 11-2, you’ll take what you can get. Right now, the kids have really bought in. They’re fighting hard. We’re not getting down (mentally). We got down 1-0, and we’re finding ways to execute and we’re winning in multiple ways. Whatever the pitching and defense gives us, we’re willing to take. It was nice the kids won that one.”

Killey, Deven Cummings and Lowery combined to allow Borden one run, eight hits, strike out six and walk four.

Higgs said they did a good job.

“At the beginning, we weren’t quite there, but we want to hang our hats on pitching and defense, and we’ve really been making strides and getting better,” he said. “Hopefully, we can continue to do that down the home stretch.”

Killey led the offense with a single and a double, Stahl and Jake Pauley also had doubles and Fultz had a single for the Braves’ five hits.

“It’s nice to play good situational baseball,” Higgs said. “Even if that kid doesn’t make an error, we still move (Stahl) over to third. Unfortunately, from their end, they didn’t get an out, but we’re going to be in a good chance to take the lead, so we’re doing the little things right.”

The Braves are 14-8 and will host Silver Creek at 6 p.m. today for a key Mid-Southern Conference battle. The Dragons are 6-0 in the MSC. The Braves are 6-1 and with a win can gain at least a share of the MSC title.

“At the end of the day, we’re right where we want to be. We’ve been talking for two weeks now where we don’t have to rely on somebody. We’ve been in the driver’s seat the whole time. We control our own destiny,” Higgs said. “As a coach or as a player, that’s a situation you want to be in. If we come out, we play well and if we win, we’re conference champs. That was one of our goals for the year.”

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