Tigers Beat Eustace, 11-1, Keep Hopes Alive

The Tiger baseball team kept the window into the playoffs cracked with an 11-1 win over Eustace on Tuesday night. That win, coupled with a Canton win over Van, left the Tigers and the Vandals tied for the final playoff spot in District 14-3A.

Wills Point will face the taller order to advance, though, as they need to win in Mineola tonight (Friday). The Yellowjackets are tied with Canton for the top spot in the district. Van will be in Eustace for the final regular season game.

The Tigers took a 3-0 lead over the Bulldogs in the their first at bat. A triple by Clay Deen, and doubles by Jayce Oldacre and Bradley McDonald led to the runs. Garret Kinney doubled in the second driving in Marshall Head, and the Tigers led 4-0 after two.

Colton Newton got the start for the Tigers and threw a shutout for three innings. Eustace scored an unearned run in the fourth, its’ only run of the game, and Newton held the Bulldogs to four hits in five innings.

The Tigers increased their lead to 8-1 with four runs in the bottom of the fourth. While Eustace was throwing the ball haphazardly around the infield, Kiefer Davis and Deen were both stealing around the base paths to score. Newton and Oldacre both hit singles, driving in Kinney, and Newton later scored on another throwing error. Kinney tripled in the fifth to spark a three-run inning and an 11-1 win.