By Justin Sokeland
WBIW.com
BEDFORD – Free baseball refers to extra innings, not the extra outs that allow free runs.
Bedford North Lawrence surrendered too many second chances, allowing Silver Creek to score in all but one frame as the Dragons dug out a 7-5 victory over their possible Class 4A sectional opponent on Tuesday evening, spoiling BNL’s home debut.
The Dragons took advantage of four BNL errors to record four unearned runs, as their relentless offensive pressure paid off. Silver Creek (3-2) scored the go-ahead run in the third to break a 2-2 deadlock, then stopped BNL’s late charge in the final frame.
”That was our goal. We just put pressure on them,” Silver Creek coach Shane Roberts said.
The Dragons, in their final year of the success-factor bump to 4A for the postseason following their 3A state championship in 2023, usually don’t require help to succeed.
”When we give them some things, it makes it pretty hard to keep them off the scoreboard,” BNL coach Steven McNabb said. “Good teams take advantage of those mistakes, and Silver Creek is a good team. You can’t give teams extra outs like that and expect to win.”
Silver Creek scored in the first on a walk, the first BNL error, and Conner Burns’ RBI single. Brody Oliver blasted a home run into the chilly wind in left field in the second.
The Stars (1-2) answered in the second. Two walks set the stage for RBI singles by Jett Alvey and Jackson Jones. But Silver Creek parlayed another error into a run-scoring single by Sean Anglin in the third, then added two more runs in the fifth (with two more BNL miscues).
BNL scored a run in the fifth, and Grayson Gillespie banged out a two-run double with two outs in the seventh before the rally fizzled. Jones and Gates had two hits each.
“We wanted to compete,” McNabb said. “It’s not necessarily about winning, we obviously want to win every game we play. But we want to compete, and we did a better job of that.”
Burns, Brody Burton and Oliver had two hits each for the Dragons. Boston Roberts earned the win on the mound with seven strikeouts in five innings.
“We had people step up,” Roberts said. “We’re down three players right now, so it’s next-man-up mentality to play for the name on the front.
“Any time you can play a quality opponent, it means something to us. We played several to get started. Our first seven games are on the road for a reason. We’re trying to build team unity that will take us to a sectional.”
BNL will visit Salem on Thursday.
