BY RAY BENTON
Leader sports editor
IN SHORT: The Cabot American Legion team beat Heber Springs 8-0 and 12-0 in a AA, AAA doubleheader Thursday night in Cabot.
The Cabot American Legion baseball team had very little trouble with Heber Springs Thursday night at Wade Field in Cabot. The Home Depot team swept their AA opponents 8-0 and 12-0 in two games.
Game one was scheduled for seven innings, but took just five as the home team took an 8-0 lead in the bottom of the fourth inning.
Starting pitcher Sam Bates got three outs in four at bats in the top of the fifth to end the contest early.
Game two, scheduled for five innings, got out of hand faster than that. Heber Springs failed to score despite getting two runners on in the top of the first, and then couldn’t throw a strike early in the bottom of the opening frame.
The first three Cabot hitters of game two, Trey Rosel, Drew Burks and Chad Bryant, each walked to load the bases. Bates hit a sac fly deep to centerfield to score Rosel. Sean Clarkson then singled to right field for another RBI. Jake Davis walked to load the bases again for Tyler Sorrels, who hit another sacrifice fly to centerfield to make it 3-0 Cabot.
Shane Burgen then walked to load the bases for the third time. That set up a three-RBI triple down the left-field line by nine-hole hitter Blake Passmore to give the host team a 6-0 lead after one inning.
Cabot added a singly tally to that in the second. Bryant and Bates hit back-to-back, one-out singles to set up an RBI base hit by Davis.
The game became totally one-sided in the third when Cabot added four more runs to its total. Burgen led off with a walk and Passmore singled to left field with no outs.
Rosel followed that with a single that scored Burgen. Two batters later, Bryant hit a RBI single and Bates hit another sac fly to centerfield to give his team an 11-0 lead.
The two victories brings Cabot’s season record up to 5-7.
A scheduled doubleheader with Sylvan Hills on Tuesday was canceled.
Cabot will be very busy in the days to come. They start a busy third week of June with a doubleheader against Pine Bluff on Sunday at Pine Bluff.
They will face Sylvan Hills Monday and Little Rock Catholic on Tuesday. Thursday, Cabot will host Russellville before taking the rest of the week off.
