By RAY BENTON
Leader sports editor
The Cabot Red Junior American Legion team picked up another win over Jacksonville on Tuesday, beating Gwatney Chevrolet 5-3 at Dupree Park. Jacksonville had a strong first inning against starting Cabot pitcher Chris Odom, scoring two runs off three base hits, though Odom did strike out the side. Odom fanned the first two Gwatney batters of the game, but Colton Goodman and Tyler Montgomery came through with back-to-back singles before Javan Wakefield drove a two-RBI double to the wall in center field.
Odom then got his third strikeout to end the inning, and did not return to the mound, complaining of soreness in his arm. He yielded to Gino Germer, who turned in a gem the rest of the way.
Jacksonville pitcher Ean Collie held Cabot scoreless in the first inning, giving up one hit to Denver Mullins, but the Centennial Bank team began to touch him in the second inning. That coincided with a sudden loss of the strike zone and a big error in the field that led to three unearned runs in a four-run second for Cabot.
The rally started with a single to center field by Easton Seidl. Collie then walked Jake Slunder and Germer. Nick Belden then hit a hard grounder to first base, where Goodman whiffed on the backhanded attempt, allowing Seidl and Slunder to score.
Nine-hole hitter Michael Shepherd then singled to right-center field to score Germer and leave runners on the corners.
Leadoff hitter Mikey Havard hit a high fly ball to right field that scored Belden. Braden Jarnagin then singled to center field, but Shepherd was thrown out trying to get to third base on an 8-4-5 relay for the second out of the inning.
Goodman took the mound in relief of Collie and got Mullins to pop up to second base to end the inning with Cabot leading 4-2.
Cabot Red made it 5-2 in the top of the third on two walks, a stolen base and a sacrifice grounder by Germer that scored Odom.
Germer held Jacksonville hitless through the second, third and fourth innings. He walked the bases loaded with two outs in the second inning with Goodman coming to bat. Goodman’s base hit in the first inning was his ninth in a row in the last three games, but Germer got him to ground out to shortstop to end his streak and the inning.
The Cabot southpaw retired the side in order in the third and fourth innings and recorded two straight outs in the sixth before Gwatney finally got a base runner.
Goodman doubled to left field and then took advantage of Germer’s failure to look at him during the next at-bat and stole third base.
Montgomery then singled with a slow grounder to shortstop that scored Goodman and set the final margin.
Goodman also did well on the mound. After giving up the base hit to Jarnagin in the second inning, he held Cabot without another base hit the rest of the way.
The game ended on the time limit after six innings. Germer threw the last five and got the win. He gave up just two hits and one earned run while walking four and fanning three.
Goodman gave up one hit and one earned run over four and two-thirds innings, striking out six and walking four.
The win lifted Cabot Red to 11-6 while Gwatney dropped to 10-8.