The ECI Bulldogs baseball team won its best-of-three series against Taylor County last week to advance to the Elite 8 round of the state playoffs. This marks the fifth consecutive year the Bulldogs have reached the third round.
ECI will host Trion this week at Joe Harvey Field. Trion enters the series as the No. 2 seed from Region 7 after losing the tiebreaker to region champion Bowdon in their head-to-head matchup.
Trion advanced to the third round by defeating Region 1 champion Miller County on the road. After dropping the opening game 7-5, Trion bounced back in a high-scoring second game with a 19-18 victory. They then earned the five-hour trip to Twin City by winning the deciding third game Thursday, 12-9.
Trion enters the series with an 18-10 record, while the Bulldogs stand at 22-12. The visitors will also be seeking revenge after being eliminated by ECI in last season’s playoffs.
The Bulldogs dropped the opening game of last week’s doubleheader against Taylor County despite a strong pitching performance by Jud Underwood. Underwood and Taylor County starter Hunter both pitched well enough to earn the win, allowing just four hits each.
The difference came in the first inning when Taylor County capitalized on a Bulldog error. With one runner on, Hunter — the Region 6 Player of the Year — launched a 2-2 pitch over the centerfield fence to give the Vikings a 2-0 lead.
ECI answered in the bottom of the third. With two runners on base, Bryson Thompson delivered a clutch double to tie the game at 2-2.
The tie was short-lived, however, as Taylor County collected two of its four hits in the top of the fourth to regain the lead at 3-2. Neither team scored again as the Bulldogs fell in the opener.
Ab Marsh, Jackson Kennedy, Bryson Thompson and Jud Underwood accounted for ECI’s four hits. Underwood pitched six innings, allowing just four hits while striking out five. Tuff Boddiford closed out the seventh inning with zeros across the board.
One advantage for the Bulldogs throughout the playoffs has been its pitching depth, which proved valuable in games two and three in series against Taylor Co.
ECI feasted on Vikings’ pitching the final two games, scoring 22 runs on 22 hits while blasting three home runs. Bulldog pitchers surrendered just five hits combined in two five-inning shutouts.
In the must-win second game Wednesday, ECI scored three runs in the first inning and never looked back, cruising to an 11-0 victory.
Tuff Boddiford and Jackson Kennedy opened the game with singles, followed by a Bryson Thompson double. A sacrifice fly by Davis Johnson and a passed ball gave the Bulldogs a quick 3-0 lead.
ECI added another run in the second inning before breaking the game open in the fourth. The biggest blow came from Underwood, whose fourth home run of the season pushed the lead to 8-0. The Bulldogs added three more runs in the fifth, including a two-run homer by Tuff Boddiford.
Boddiford led the offense with three hits, including the home run. Kennedy and Ab Marsh each added two hits. Thompson pitched all five innings, allowing four hits while striking out eight.
The Bulldogs wasted little time in Thursday’s deciding game.
ECI carried that momentum into Thursday’s deciding game. After scoring two runs in the first inning, ECI broke the game wide open with a nine-run second inning, all with two outs. The Bulldogs sent 14 batters to the plate and collected eight hits, highlighted by a two-run homer from second baseman Gunner Johnson. Those would be the final runs of the game as ECI completed its second straight 11-0 shutout in five innings.
Jackson Kennedy continued his hot playoff stretch with two more hits. Lake Bush and Gunner Johnson also recorded two hits apiece.
Kennedy also delivered on the mound, allowing just one hit while striking out five over five innings.
Game times are set for this week’s three-game series against Trion. First pitch for Game 1 today is scheduled for 4 p.m., with Game 2 to follow at 6:30 p.m. If necessary, Game 3 will be played Thursday at 3:30 p.m.
