ALWS Game 2: Michigan finds hits in time to beat Louisiana
For three innings, dueling perfection struck in Game 2 Thursday at the American Legion World Series.
It was because the first 19 batters were retired in order before Midland (Mich.) Post 165 struck for a run in the fourth inning that spurred them to a 3-0 victory over Bossier City (La.) Post 202 at Veterans Field at Keeter Stadium in Shelby, N.C.
“That was a good one,” said Midland coach Dan Cronkright, whose program is making its 12th ALWS appearance all-time and record ninth trip to Shelby in its 14 years as host. “That kid for them (Cade Bryant) threw really well and Chad (Brown) had a good game for us.
“We played good defense. When you play good defense and you pitch well, it puts you in a good shape.”
Brown fired a three-hitter with two walks and 12 strikeouts for Midland. A 6-foot-6, 230-pound senior at Hemlock (Mich.) High School, Brown retired the first 13 batters he faced, then yielded back-to-back one-out infield hits in the fifth and two more in the sixth but worked out of each jam to preserve his shutout.
“We had some innings where we threatened a little bit and he made some good pitches to get out of it,” said Bossier City coach Dane Peavy, who is in the ALWS for the first time since he coached Texarkana (Ark.) to the 2016 title. “Hat’s off to that guy. He threw a well-pitched ballgame and I thought Cade pitched well too. We just didn’t get the hits when we needed to. And that’s the name of the game.”
Midland (28-6) scored in the fourth, fifth and seventh innings. In the fourth, Mitchell Walters singled in Cayden Smith, who had drawn a one-out walk to become the first baserunner of the game and stole second base.
“It was big for us just to get a lead and pick away and build on it,” Cronkright said.
Post 165 scored in the fifth on a wild pitch and added a run in the seventh on Sam Briggs’ RBI single.
Bryant was the hard luck loser in a four-hitter with two walks and two strikeouts.
Both teams are off on Friday in the Stripes Division as Midland meets Wilmington Delvets (Del.) Post 1 on Saturday at 3 p.m. and Bossier City meets Billings Scarlets (Mont.) Post 4 on Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
In Peavy’s previous championship visit, his team lost its opener before bouncing back to win the championship.
“Those guys are probably frustrated,” Peavy said of his team. “Nobody wants to lose. But to know you’re still OK and still have a chance to reach your goals is important. We’ll just go back and regroup and use the day off to think about some things and get ready to get back at it on Saturday.”
