The Jackson Indians are firing on all cylinders and look to be in midseason form after winning their fourth straight game on Saturday. They took down the Hazelwood West Wildcats 6-2 and improved to 7-2 on the young season.
The Indians got things going in the second inning when Baden Hackworth led off with a double to left. Then a ground out, a hit by pitch and a fielder’s choice grounder to second off the bat of Jack Wyatt gave the Tribe a 1-0 lead.
After a sharp top of the 3rd on the mound for Kaden Kendle, Jackson got the offense humming again. Henley Parker led off the bottom of the frame with a double and came around to score on a Steven Schneider ground out. Then Caden Bogenpohl roped a ground-rule double to center, advanced to third on a wild pitch and stole home with two outs. That gave the Indians a 3-0 lead.
Hazelwood cracked the scoreboard in the fourth with a couple runs, but Jackson got one right back in the fifth. After a walk to Schneider to lead off the inning, Bogenpohl hit another ground-rule double to put runners at 2nd and 3rd with nobody out. Quinton Borders brought in Schneider with a sharp grounder to short to increase the lead to 4-1.
Borders would strike again in the sixth, doubling to left with two runners on and pushing them both across the plate. That made it 6-1 and was essentially the nail in the coffin for the Wildcats. They did manage to scratch out a run in the seventh, but Jackson had this one locked up at 6-2.
Kendle was solid on the mound for 3.1 innings, allowing two runs on two hits and four walks while striking out a pair. Carson McDaniel came on in relief and was brilliant, tossing 3.2 scoreless innings. He allowed just one hit and didn’t walk a man. He had two punch outs as well.
Offensively Borders shined with three RBI, and Bogenpohl showed off his power with two ground-rule doubles in four trips to the plate. He went 2-for-3 with a walk, a run scored and a pair of steals.
Parker had a nice day at the dish as well with a 2-for-4 effort and a run scored. The Indians had eight hits as a team, including five doubles. They also flashed their speed once again with six steals.
This is a pretty complete baseball team. Power at virtually every position, great defense, more speed than opponents can handle and a loaded pitching staff. Look for this win streak to continue on Monday when they travel to Oakville.
