POSTGAME WITH COACH HARRISS AND CALEB PRITCHETT

LONGVIEW - For the second day in a row, the LeTourneau YellowJacket baseball team got terrific pitching performances, great defensive efforts, and clutch hitting to complete the three game sweep over the Ozarks Eagles. 

In the first game, sophomore Cody Whitley came out and put the Eagles (13-19, 2-10 ASC) quickly through the first two innings. However, the Ozarks were able to scratch a run across the plate in the third to take a 1-0 lead.

The Jackets (18-11, 8-7 ASC) looked to responded quickly in the bottom half of the third as sophomore Caleb Pritchett led things off with a single to left center. After a sac bunt to move him to second and a deep fly ball to move him to third, junior Bryce Griffin scored Pritchett on a RBI single to right to tie things up.

LeTourneau look to keep the momentum rolling into the fourth as sophomore Ryan Bertram led things off with a single. After a hit by pitch, junior Matt Leftwich put a great bunt down that was dropped by the first baseman and allowed Bertram to score to go on top 2-1.

The Ozarks got two runners on with a pair of singles with one out in the fifth, but the Whitley responded with a pair of strikeouts to end the inning. Whitley was strong down the stretch as he held off any attempt for a rally to pick up the win and clinch the series. He pitched a complete game, allowing one run on eight hits and striking out seven.

Griffin led the way in the first game of the afternoon, going 2-for-3 with a RBI while Bertram was 1-for-3 with a run scored. Pritchett was 1-for-2 and scored a run as the Jackets struggled again at the plate, only getting four hits.

In the second game, both teams were locked in on the pitching mound as neither team got anything going in the first three and a half innings. The Jackets came up in the fourth and got a leadoff single from Griffin followed by a single from junior Garrett Methvin. R. Bertram then came to the plate and put a great bunt down that was thrown away by the catcher to score a run and take a 1-0 lead. 

However, the Eagles did a nice job limiting the damage and keeping the score at 1-0 and finally broke through in the sixth by getting a pair of RBIs for a 2-1 lead.

Both teams were quiet throughout the next couple of innings as the relievers began to enter the game. The Jackets came up in the bottom of the eighth looking to take control as Griffin worked a one out walk. Methvin followed him up with a towering two run homer well over the right field scoreboard for a 3-2 lead.

However, the pesky Eagles battled back in the ninth and got a two out RBI single that just went off the glove of senior Brent Seller who made a tremendous diving effort to tie things at three and send the game into extra.

The Ozarks threatened in the 10th, but junior Jordan Price kept them at bay. In the bottom half of the 10th, the Jackets forced a pair of two out walks to bring Pritchett to the plate. He scorched an outside fastball into right to score the game winning run and complete the sweep.

Price gets his first win of his collegiate career as he came in relief and only allowed one run on seven hits while striking out three. Freshman Josh Gimre got the start and was great, pitching six innings and only allowing two earned runs on four hits and striking out four. The Jackets allowed four total runs as a pitching staff for the weekend and committed zero errors in the field. 

Offensively, Pritchett was 2-for-4 with a RBI and the game winning hit while Methvin added a 2-for-4 day with a run scored and two RBIs. Griffin was 1-for-3 with two runs scored while Sellers and junior Dustin Varnado each picked up hits.

The Jackets honored four seniors in Jay Lutz, Will Bunker, Rhett Bohannon, and Brent Sellers. The department would like to thank these four for their hard work on the field, in the classroom, and in the community.

LeTourneau is right in the thick of things as they look to qualify for postseason play. They return to action on Tuesday as they welcome in the East Texas Baptist Tigers for a non-conference home game. First pitch is set for 7 p.m. with the game streamed live on letuathletivs.tv.