By JASON KING
Leader sportswriter
Cabot AAA picked up its first win of the season on Wednesday against Sylvan Hills 8-3 at the Conrad Sports Complex. Southpaw Justin Haas went the distance on the mound for Cabot in the contest to earn the win, despite giving up a total of eight hits to the Bruins.
The bottom of the fifth inning would be the decider in the game, with Cabot racking up five runs to increase their 3-1 advantage to an 8-1 lead. Sylvan Hills put a run up on the board in the sixth and another in the top of the seventh inning, but was not able to fully answer.
It was the Bruins that struck first in the game with a run in the top of the first inning to take an early 1-0 lead. Cabot struggled its first time through the batting lineup, but had the bats in order by the bottom of the third inning.
Cabot would finally score in the third to tie the game at one run apiece, and came away with two more in the bottom of the fourth inning. While they were enjoying their strongest offensive success in the game during the middle stages, it was also Cabot’s biggest defensive stand of the contest, shutting out the Bruins for four consecutive innings while building up a comfortable advantage.
“We’ve played well all year,” Cabot coach Andy Runyon said. “We were finally able to put it all together and get a win. We played well defensively, and this time, we got a couple of breaks.
Colin Fuller led Cabot offensively, going 3 for 5 with an RBI, along with two stolen bases and two runs scored. Logan Lucas was 2 for 2 with three RBIs and a stolen base, and Drew Burks was 2 for 4 with an RBI.
For Haas, eight strikeouts and three walks would highlight his evening at the mound. The Clark College signee gave up eight hits and two earned runs in the game, but closed out the game in the top of the seventh to pick up his first win of the summer. The win gives Cabot a record of 1-4.
The Cabot A team also came away with a win over Sylvan Hills on Wednesday in the first game of the evening. Cabot jumped out to a two-run advantage in the first inning and never looked back to win 6-2.
All of the damage in the contest came in the first two innings from Cabot. The pair of runs in the opening inning were joined by four more runs in the second. In all, Cabot would rack up nine hits in the game, compared to four for the Bruins.
Sylvan Hills did not get on the board at all until the top of the sixth inning, which would prove to be too little, too late for the Bruins. Cabot reliever Chase Beasley closed things out in the top of the seventh inning to give the win to starting hurler C.J. Jacoby.
Jeremy Wilson was 3 for 4 for Cabot with two runs and a stolen base. Josh Brown was 2 for 3 with a double and three RBIs. Cabot A now has a record of 3-2.
Cabot AAA will be back in action today against Russellville at the Conrade Sports Complex beginning at 4:30 p.m. The A squad will play.
