Baseball 4-0 with tournament wins

By John Smithson

The North Myrtle Beach Chiefs varsity baseball team opened their season with four straight wins and a championship in the Coastal Invitational Tournament held last weekend at Waccamaw High School.

The Chiefs opened play in the tournament last Thursday with a 9-1 victory over the host Warriors team.

The game was scoreless until the top of the third inning. Singles by Josh Shemanskis and Jack Williams, and Evan Steudl hit by a pitch loaded the bases before Sawyer Smith doubled to center and gave the Chiefs a 2-0 lead.

Camden Butler homered to left field in the top of the fourth for a 3-0 lead. Trevor Mitchetti walked to open the top of the sixth. After Butler struck out, Andrew Mundy tripled to center scoring Mitchetti.  Williams drove in Mundy from third and it was 5-0.

Waccamaw scored a run in the bottom of the sixth inning to trail 5-1. The Chiefs then put the game away in the top of the seventh inning.

Kaden Lank grounded out. Gabe Priest walked and Riley Wiggins ran for him. Steudl singled to left and  Wiggins moved to second. Sawyer Smith walked to load the bases. Mitchetti then hit a grand slam homer to left and the Chiefs had a 9-1 win after Fisher Nichols retired the Warriors in the bottom of the seventh.

The Chiefs used three pitchers in the game, Noah Nance for three innings, Jake Frick for three innings and one inning by Nichols.

Last Friday the Chiefs played Sumter in game two of the tournament. The Chiefs opened the top of the first with walks to Kaden Lank, Gabe Priest and Evan Steudl. A walk to Sawyer Smith drove in Lank and a fielders choice grounder scored the second run of the game.

The Chiefs added two more runs in the top of the second. After two outs Lank singled to left and Priest walked. Steudl doubled to left and the Chiefs led 4-0 after two innings.

Sumter got on the scoreboard after a hit batsman, single and walk loaded the bases. A single to left drove in two runs and the Chiefs lead was cut to 4-2 after two innings.

Lank homered to left to up the Chiefs lead to 5-2 going to the bottom of the fourth. Luke Breeden  struck out the first two batters in the bottom of the fourth but then hit a batter  and walked the next hitter. An error by Priest in left field scored a run and a two-run homer gave the Gamecocks a 6-5 lead going to the top of the fifth inning.

Two walks and an error loaded the bases for the Chiefs. Breeden singled to left and Butler and Smith scored. The Chiefs led 7-6, going to the bottom of the fifth. The Gamecocks first hitter walked but a fielders choice wiped him out at second. Then a grounder to third was turned into a Lank to Williams to Mundy double play and win number two for the Chiefs in the CIT.

Game three on Saturday for the Chiefs was a nailbiter against Fort Mill.  The Chiefs scored a run in the top of the first inning on a double by Steudl, an error, a hit that loaded the bases and an RBI single by Gabe Priest. The Chiefs 1-0 lead lasted until the bottom of the third. With two out, Fort Mill singled, and a bunt single advanced the runner to third. He stole home to tie the game at 1-1.

The game remained scoreless through seven innings and went to the top of the eighth with Kaden Lank on second for the Chiefs by rule. Smith popped out and Butler singled to right and went to second on the throw with Lank going to third. Esposito bunted and was safe at first but the other runners held up. Mundy struck out to end the top of the eighth.

Fort Mill also had a runner on second to begin the bottom of the inning and Sawyer Smith intentionally walked the first hitter. Smith pitched out of trouble with a strikeout, fly to center and another strikeout.

In the top of the ninth Garver was put on third to start the inning. Williams grounded to second and Garver scored the go-ahead run. With a Fort Mill runner on third in the bottom of the ninth Sawyer walked the first batter but struck out the next two and the game ended with a 2-1 Chiefs win.

Gabe Priest pitched well giving up five hits and one run over four innings and struck out six. Sawyer Smith gave up no hits or runs in four and two-thirds innings and he struck out seven.

With their win the Chiefs moved to Sunday’s championship game against Lucy Beckham. This time the Chiefs were the home team and they got an 8-1 lead after five innings, scoring three runs in the first, one in the second and two more in the third inning. The Bengals got one run in the second before scoring five runs in the top of the seventh inning. Luckily the Chiefs had added two runs in the bottom of the fifth to pad their lead.

Steudl hit a two-run homer in the first inning and added another on a double by Mitchetti. Kaden Lank’s double accounted for a second inning run and ten walks set the table for RBIs by Williams, Mundy and Wiggins. Fisher Nichols was solid over four innings allowing one run and striking out seven. Jake Frick was on the mound in the top of the seventh inning but gave up no earned runs in that inning.

The Chiefs traveled to South Florence on Wednesday and start region play Monday at Conway.