By RAY BENTON
Leader sports editor
The Cabot Junior Team 1 American Legion team finished the regular season with a doubleheader split Monday at home against Lake Hamilton. Cabot beat Lake Hamilton’s junior team 5-4 then fell 6-5 to Lake Hamilton’s AA team Monday night at Cabot City Park.
The games’ results leaves the Cabot junior team with an overall season record of 19-13 heading into the junior zone tournament that begins Thursday at Vince De Salvo Stadium at Burns Park in North Little Rock.
In game one, the Centennial Bank team went up 3-0 in the bottom of the first inning only to see the entire lead vanish in the top of the third. Tristan Bulice put Cabot back in front in the bottom of the third with a solo home run, and Lake Hamilton tied it again in the top of the fourth before Cabot got the win with a run in the bottom of the same inning.
Dylan Bowers faced all but one Lake Hamilton batter, giving up six hits and two earned runs in his time in the mound.
Austin Nell got the final out for the save.
Cabot fell behind 6-1 in game two before rallying late and nearly tying the game in the bottom of the seventh inning. The Centennial Bank team scored three runs in the sixth inning to make it 6-4, then another with one out in the seventh before falling just short.
In the sixth inning, Bulice doubled to left field with one out, it was the sixth base hit in seven at bats for the Cabot catcher. He then scored on an error at shortstop off the bat of Jonathan Latture.
Kyle Kaufman then put down a bunt single that also scored Latture. He then scored on a double steal.
In the seventh inning, Adam Hicks walked and Knudsen singled to right field. Both base runners advanced into scoring position on a wild pitch with Bulice at the plate. Bulice then singled to right field to score Hicks. Knudsen also attempted to advance, but was thrown out at home plate.
Latture then popped up to the pitcher for the third out to end the ball game.
“It’s starting to come around,” Cabot coach Chris Gross said. “Tristan Bulice is just killing it. We’re starting to get some good pitching. Hopefully we’ll keep putting things together in the zone tournament.”
Knudsen started on the mound and pitched two-and-a-third innings. The senior Wolves got seven hits and five earned runs in that time before Knudsen yielded to Gavin Tillery. Lake Hamilton got one run off Tillery, but not much else. In his four-and-two-thirds innings pitched, he gave up six hits while striking out eight and walking none.
On Saturday, Cabot crushed North Little Rock 16-0.
Hicks got the shutout facing just two more batters than the minimum for five innings. He gave up one hit, struck out five and walked none.
Bulice got another home run in that win. He, Dalten Hurst and Nell each drove in two runs while Bulice and Hurst got two hits apiece. Hurst went 2 for 4, walked twice and scored four runs.
