BROWNsTOWN
Brownstown Central’s baseball team came up with one of its best all-around performances of the season to shut out Providence 8-0 Tuesday afternoon.
Braves Coach Brandon Tormoehlen said this is the kind of game he’s looking for the last week of the regular season.
[sc:text-divider text-divider-title=”Story continues below gallery” ]Click here to purchase photos from this gallery
“We’ve been talking to the guys all year long about putting all four aspects of the game together and we did that tonight,” he said. “We did a good job of base running, we did a good job pitching, we did a pretty good job hitting, and a real good job defensively. It was a situation where it’s nice to see. We haven’t done that very often this year and it’s good to see last week of the season those guys come in and doing that.”
He said it was a good bounce-back win after losing at Silver Creek Monday.
“(Monday) night we didn’t play very well. We just didn’t throw enough strikes. Our pitchers kind of set the tone for us, whether it’s good or bad,” Tormoehlen said. “It was Seth’s (Borden) first start of the year and he came out and threw strikes and was able to keep our defense in, and when our defense is getting some action they’re pretty good as far as making plays. I’m really proud of him the way he stepped up and threw strikes, and did a nice job tonight.”
Borden, a senior right-hander, spaced out four singles over the first six inning.
The Pioneers used a fielder’s choice, double and hit batsman to load the bases in the seventh. Hunter Spriglier hit a sinking liner to left field that Matthew Bell came in on and made a diving, shoe-string catch to preserve the shutout.
Tormoehlen said Borden’s ability to get ahead of the batters was key.
“That’s something we talk about a lot. We always talk about the most important pitch in baseball is strike one,” he said. “Last night we didn’t do it, tonight we did.”
Borden finished with a six-hitter, and had four strike outs, no walks, and threw 90 pitches, including 63 for strikes in hurling Brownstown’s second shutout of the season.
The Braves scored two runs in the second inning, made it 4-0 in the fourth, then put the game out of reach with three in the fifth and closed the scoring with one in the sixth.
Bell and Jake Pauley hit back-to-back singles in the second, and with two out, Clay Chastain, Isaiah Wineinger and Borden drew back-to-back-to-back walks to force in two runs.
Isaac Horton and Chastain had singles in the fourth and both scored on Wineinger’s double that rolled to the fence in left-center field.
Lucas Hines began the rally in the fifth by reaching first base safely on an error. Bell walked, and Pauley and Chastain had singles that scored runs, and Pauley scored on a delayed double-steal.
Borden was safe on a fielder’s choice in the sixth and scored on an error.
Wineinger had two doubles, drew two walks and had three RBIs. Bell and Chastain both had two hits and an RBI, and Bell and Pauley both scored two runs.
Five Braves combined for eight hits, six players scored runs, and four had at least one.
“We had some guys step up. Jake Pauley had a really good night,” Tormoehlen said. “Any time we can get the bottom on in front of the guys coming up on top it’s a good thing for us.”
The Braves (16-6) will host Corydon Central Thursday, Jennings County and Madison Saturday and Trinity Lutheran on Monday.