Oak Mountain pitchers total 25 combined strikeouts in doubleheader sweep

Published 8:50 am Sunday, March 13, 2022

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By ALEC ETHEREDGE | Managing Editor 

NORTH SHELBY – Pitching was on full display for the Oak Mountain Eagles on Friday, March 11, in a low-scoring doubleheader battle with Stanhope Elmore.

In two games that were evenly matched at the plate for the majority of the night, the difference came on the mound.

The Eagles got a combined 25 strikeouts from Garrison Kahn, Kevin Jasinski and Maddox Macrory to pick up two consecutive 2-1 victories and sweep the doubleheader.

Kahn and Jasinski were big in the opening game, combining for 13 strikeouts between the two of them.

Kahn allowed three hits and two walks, eventually giving up one unearned run, but he struck out nine in just a four-inning stretch to put himself in position for the win.

Jasinski then entered to finish off the final three innings and was flawless, allowing no hits, walks or runs and striking out four.

The difference at the plate came thanks to an early run in the bottom of the first and then a tie-breaking run in the fourth for the Eagles.

Davis Gillispie was the first to strike in the home half of the opening inning. On a day where hits were limited, he led off the inning with a solo shot to right field that put the Eagles in front 1-0.

Stanhope was able to answer in the top of the third with an RBI single, evening the game.

But in the bottom of the fourth, Oak Mountain put the first two batters aboard in the inning. A sac bunt from Carter Kimbrell moved both into scoring position, which allowed Andrew Hunt to drive home what became the game-winning run with an RBI ground out.

Gillespie finished 2-for-3 at the plate with an RBI, totaling two of the team’s four hits. Macrory and Nick McCord had the other hits, while Hunt added his game-winning RBI.

In game two, it was another flawless pitching effort, this time from Macrory.

The Eagles, however, still had to battle back late in the game.

Neither team could find an offensive rhythm in the first three innings, but Stanhope was able to break the 0-0 tie with an RBI single in the top of the fourth.

Oak Mountain struggled to bring home runs through the first five innings of the game, leaving several on base, but that quickly changed late in the game.

Needing at least a run to tie, the Eagles led off the bottom of the sixth with a single from Matthew Heiberger, a walk from Conner Moore and another single from McCord to load the bases with no outs.

A bases-loaded walk to Hunt then brought home the game-tying run.

Oak Mountain still didn’t put together a huge inning offensively, but with Macrory in a rhythm on the mound, the Eagles wanted at least one more run, and they got it on an RBI bunt from Grant Rakers to take a 2-1 lead going to the final inning.

Stanhope was able to put the game-tying run on in the top of the seventh, but Macrory had three strikeouts outside of the lone single to end a dominant game.

He struck out 12 in the complete-game win, while allowing five hits and two walks with the lone run.

At the plate, McCord went 2-for-2 with a walk to lead the way, while Rakers went 1-for-2 with an RBI. Macrory and Heiberger each added one hit, while Hunt had the game-winning RBI.