BY CLIFF SMELLEY
Telegraph Staff Writer
Ryland Rike hit a two-run double as part of a six-run fourth inning, but the Bradford High School baseball team came up just short in a 10-9 loss to visiting Madison County on April 24.
The Cowboys, who are ranked ninth in the Florida High School Athletic Association’s Class 1A power poll, scored the game’s first four runs and built a 10-3 lead.
Rike led off the bottom of the fourth with a single. One out later, the bases were loaded on a Ryder Thompson single and a Jeffrey Brugh walk. Cason Pilcher hit a ground ball to score Rike and reached safely on an error. Foster Smith and Mattox Burgin then drew back-to-back bases-loaded walks to force two runs in. With two outs, Jaron Hale drew a bases-loaded walk before Rike stepped up to bat again, hitting a double into left field to make it a 10-9 game.
The Tornadoes (7-15) stranded a runner at third in the fifth inning and failed to score in the sixth when putting two on with no outs.
Rike finished 2 for 4 with two RBI, while Burgin, Hale, Pilcher, Smith and Kacen Thomassen each had one RBI.
Prior to playing Madison, Bradford lost 21-12 to visiting Palatka on April 20, followed by a 9-8 loss to host Hamilton County on April 21.
Bradford scored seven runs in the first inning and led 12-5 after two innings in the game against Palatka.
Thomassen and Luke Stucky drove in two runs each in the first inning, with Thomassen hitting a double and Stucky hitting a single. Pilcher drove in a run on a sacrifice fly, while runs also scored on a wild pitch and an error.
In the second inning, Thomassen was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded before Pilcher hit an RBI single. Kevin Crawford drew a bases-loaded walk, while C.J. McKinney drove in a run on a sacrifice fly. Brugh then hit a two-out double to push another two runs across and give the Tornadoes a seven-run lead.
Palatka scored six runs in the fourth, including three on errors.
It was 12-11 going into the final inning. The Panthers scored 10 runs off four hits, an error and three bases-loaded walks.
Stucky finished 3 for 4, while Burgin and Brugh went 2 for 4 and 2 for 5, respectively.
In the loss to Hamilton County, Bradford trailed 9-3 before scoring five runs in the final inning.
With one on and two outs in the seventh, Crawford hit an RBI single, scoring Stucky, who reached on an error. After Rike reached on a fly ball error, Ryder Thompson hit a run-scoring single. Rike scored on a steal of home, followed by Breion Johnson reaching on an error. Brugh hit a single to score the inning’s fourth run. An error on the play allowed another run to score, cutting the Tornadoes’ deficit to one. A strikeout ended the game.
Brugh went 3 for 3 with three RBI, while Thompson went 2 for 4 with one RBI.
Burgin and Crawford each had one RBI.
The Tornadoes travel to play Wolfson on Wednesday, April 26, at 6 p.m. and will travel to play Belleview on Friday, April 28, at 6 p.m.
On Monday, May 1, Bradford will begin play in the District 2-3A tournament quarterfinals, with games being played at various schools determined by seeding. The semifinals are Tuesday, May 2, at 7 p.m., with the championship game being played on Thursday, May 4, at 7 p.m.
Seeding and matchups weren’t known by deadline.
