BLYTHEWOOD – Pitching, defense, and timely hitting pushed the Blythewood baseball team into Wednesday’s 5A upper state championship game.
The Bengals (23-6) opened the upper state tournament with a 6-2 win over Boiling Springs May 10. That win set up Ben Blackwell’s complete-game 1-hitter in a 1-0 victory over T.L. Hanna Saturday.
Against Boiling Springs, Blythewood went up 5-1 after a 2-run first inning and a 3-run second.
Macon Leppert’s 1-out double scored Alex Myers to tie the game at 1 in the first. Carson Weathers sacrifice fly scored Camden Watts to put the Bengals up 2-1.
In the second inning, Myers’ one-out single scored Xavier Cuevas. With Myers on base, Macon Leppert smacked a 2-out home run over the centerfield fence.
The Bengals went up 6-1 when Myers reached base on an error that enabled Harrison Collins to score.
Boiling Springs got a run in the fifth inning, but starting pitcher Landon Penfield kept the Bulldogs in check. Penfield lasted 5 1/3 innings, giving up six hits and walking four, but striking out six. Blackwell pitched 1 2/3 innings, giving up a hit but striking out four.
Blackwell stayed fired up for his Saturday start, blanking T.L. Hanna, walking one and striking out six. The Yellow Jackets’ one and only hit, Owen Alexander’s leadoff-double in the second inning, proved fruitless as Blackwell got the next three Yellow Jackets batters to ground out or pop out in the infield.
Blythewood faced Boiling Springs again for the upper state championship. After dropping into the losers bracket May 10, the Bulldogs (22-11) eliminated Lexington (28-7) 2-0 Saturday, then knocked out the Yellow Jackets (20-15) 2-1 Monday.
Boiling Springs would have had to defeat Blythewood twice to advance to the state championship.
In lower state action, Summerville (22-8) played at River Bluff (25-6) Wednesday in the championship game. The Green Wave would have had to beat the Gators twice to advance.
Thursday
Boiling Spring 100 010 00 – 2, 7, 1
Blythewood – 2-3-1-0-0-0-X – 6, 8, 0
W: Landon Penfield
BS: Luke Compton 2-3, 2B. Justin Dawkins 2-3, 2B. BHS: Macon Leppert 2-4, 2B, HR, 3 RBI. Carson Weathers 2-3. Alex Myers 2-4, 2RBI. Xavier Cuevas 2B.
Saturday
T.L. Hanna – 0-0-0-0-0-0-0 – 0, 1, 0
Blythewood – 0-0-0-0-0-0-X – 1, 3, 0
W: Ben Blackwell
T: Owen Alexander 2B. BHS: Macon Leppert 2-3, 2B.