By RAY BENTON
Leader sports editor
The Cabot baseball team split a 7A/6A-East doubleheader Friday at Brian Wade Conrade field. The visiting Bombers stole a 6-5 victory in game one, but the Panthers bounced back to trounce Mountain Home 14-1 in the late game.
Mountain Home got all six runs in the top of the third inning to take a 6-2 lead, and was just able to hold off a Cabot rally in the last two innings.
Mountain Home got a one-out single before Cole Anderson slammed an RBI triple to the wall in center field. Another single and a walk issued by Gavin Tillery left it 2-2 with two men on base. Matt Robbins then hit a two-RBI double to center and pitcher Ryan Czanstkowski smashed a two-run home run to left field to complete the inning.
Cabot pulled to within 6-4 in the sixth inning on four singles and a Bomber error.
Czanstkowski then hit Tristan Bulice and Landon James with one out in the seventh. The runners then advanced into scoring position on a passed ball and Eric Larsen hit a sacrifice grounder that scored Bulice. Sophomore Easton Seidl swung at the first pitch with two outs and James at third, and hit a fly ball to center field to end the game.
Tillery went six innings and took the loss. He only gave up two hits in his other five innings on the mound, for a total of seven hits and six earned runs with six strikeouts and one walk.
Cabot also got seven base hits with Blake McCutchen leading the way with two.
The Panthers got 13 hits and Mountain Home committed five errors in game two. Many of those hits went for extra bases. Larsen hit a three-run home run in the fourth inning, while James, Bulice, Dylan Bowers, Denver Mullins and Evan Hooper all doubled.
Chase Kyzer went the five-inning distance on the mound, giving up six hits and one earned run with seven strikeouts and zero walks.
The Panthers (8-5, 5-1) will play their first conference road game tonight at Jonesboro, and will host nearby rival Jacksonville in a nonconference game at 5 p.m. Friday.
