Not satisfied with winning almost as many games in a month as all of last season, the Warren County High School baseball team brought in a powerhouse from West Tennessee to see where the Pioneers stand against the state’s best.
The results ended up being mixed when taking on the Houston Mustangs.
Logan McCormack flirted with a no-hitter through four innings, but the Mustangs busted out the big bats in the final three innings to prevail 8-3 over the Pioneers at Patrick Ramsey Field.
Houston came into Thursday’s game with a reputation of being one of the top programs in Tennessee. The Mustangs were runners-up in the state tournament in 2010 and won a state championship in 2005.
Since Lane McCarter, a Warren County graduate, took over the Houston program in 2000, 50 Mustangs have gone on to play college baseball.
The Mustangs didn’t seem to intimidate the Pioneers though.
Warren County took a two-run lead into the fifth inning behind McCormack’s brilliant pitching.
The senior didn’t allow a hit through the first four innings and the Pioneers used every trick in the book to put two runs on the board.
Lead-off hitter Brett Mullican got the scoring started in the first inning. Using his speed, Mullican poked the ball past the mound and right in front of the second baseman.
With the ball getting tangled in tall grass, something Mustang players didn’t seem accustomed to, Mullican beat the throw to first for an infield single.
Mullican advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt by Collin Hutchins, then moved to third on a ground out by Garrison Holmes.
Austin Green continued his recent streak of great hitting with a single through the right side of the infield to put the Pioneers ahead 1-0.
Warren County scratched another run across in the fourth when Daulton Foster started the inning with a double and scored on a fielder’s choice off the bat of Alex Hillis. Hillis beat a throw to first as Houston tried to turn an inning-ending double play that would’ve nullified Foster scoring.
Leading 2-0 entering the fifth, the no-hitter went away on a lead-off double by the Mustangs.
McCormack responded with back-to-back strikeouts, but a rare error by the Pioneers gave Houston its first run.
In an attempt to throw out a stealing runner at third, Austin Panter missed his mark and the ball rolled into left field.
It was just enough time for the Mustang runner to recover and score, cutting the Pioneer lead in half.
Then the home runs started.
Houston took the lead in the sixth when Connor Hawthrone hit a two-run home run off McCormack on a 0-2 curveball that missed its mark.
McCormack left shortly after, turning the game over to Derek Brumley. Two errors, along with two doubles, gave Houston three more runs before Brumley could battle out of the inning.
Cory Chafin gave the Mustangs some insurance in the top of the seventh when he hit a two-run home run off Brumley, chasing the senior out of the game.
Kyle Rutledge came in to get the final out of the seventh as the Pioneers had fallen behind 8-2.
Warren County wasn’t going to give up hope in the final inning, even when the Mustangs brought in hard-throwing lefty Colin Lee.
Lee, who already has signed to play at the University of Memphis next season, struck out the first two batters of the inning before plunking Mullican with a pitch.
Hutchins followed with a sharp single into left field, putting two runners aboard with two outs.
Holmes brought Mullican around with an RBI single to make it a five-run game.
Green drew a walk to load the bases, but the Pioneers’ hopes were dashed when Hillis went down swinging on a full count to end the game.
McCormack took the loss, giving up four runs, two earned, on three hits in four innings of work. McCormack finished with three strikeouts and three walks.
Holmes led the Pioneers with two hits, while Green finished 1-for-2 with a walk and an RBI.