For the first time this spring, the Guthrie High School baseball team has dropped two games in a row. Now, the crucial part of the season begins this week.
The Jays started the week with the dreadful drive to Guymon for a district doubleheader. Despite the long drive, Guthrie captured two convincing wins 28-3 and 23-5.
In the two games combined, Guthrie out-hit the Tigers 44 to 13. Leading the charge was senior Cale Evans who was a perfect 5 for 5 with five runs driven in.
Juniors Hayden Calvert and Luke Hubbard joined senior Josh Dement in providing the long ball.
Next up was the Duncan Tournament which featured half the field showcasing they are capable of qualifying for May’s state tournament. Three of those four teams were in the upper portion of the bracket with Duncan, Lone Grove, and Guthrie.
On Thursday, the Jays erupted for seven runs in the sixth inning – in a 3 -3 game – to down the much-improved Altus Bulldogs, 10-5.
Evans sparked the sixth with a double to left field to plate senior Willy Clymer. Senior Carson Wilder followed up with a double of his own to score Clymer.
Freshmen hurler Owen Wilder was spectacular in his six and two-thirds innings thrown. His ability to get outs proved to be crucial until his offense was able to come through.
Owen Wilder collected seven strikeouts and only two bases on balls for the win.
The win set up a rematch with Duncan, defending 5A state champions, on Friday night. Last month, the Jays downed the Demons 4-3 inside Squires Field.
Duncan jumped out to a 2-0 lead after three innings before Guthrie was able to get on the scoreboard.
Dement and freshman Kellen Hirzel collected singles with Hirzel scoring Dement to pull within a run, 2-1.
Guthrie tied the game at 2-all in the sixth which started with a single by senior Zach Henry. With the bases loaded, senior Jackson Walters was hit by a pitch to allow Hubbard to come home.
The Jays took their first lead of the game in the top of the seventh inning.
Evans provided the spark with a line-drive double to get the inning started and came home on a Hubbard RBI single to take the 3-2 lead.
However, Duncan scored two runs by allowing two singles, a walk, and two hit-by-pitch to walk the Jays off in a fun high school baseball game.
On the third and final day, the Jays started the freshmen battery of Hirzel and Owen Wilder against the Class 3A Marlow Outlaws who qualified for last year’s state tournament and will have another shot in a few weeks.
Unfortunately for the Jays, it was another walk-off setback for the Jays as Marlow scored a run in the bottom of the eighth inning for the win.
Trailing 9-8 in the top of the seventh and needing a run, Carson Wilder reached on catcher’s interference and eventually made his way to second base. Hirzel reached on an error that also allowed Carson Wilder to score the tying run.
Marlow collected three singles in the eighth to help push two runs across for the win.
Guthrie is now 17-3 on the season and a perfect 8-0 district record, but Carl Albert, Piedmont, and McGuinness are also 8-0 in the district. Now, the crucial district begins for all four teams.
Of the four undefeated district teams, only two can host regionals in the first week of May.
The Jays will travel to Piedmont on Monday before returning to Squires Field on Tuesday. In the following week take on Carl Albert and McGuinness the following week to determine playoff positioning.
The week is also the return of the annual Guthrie 89’er Tournament with games beginning on Thursday.
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