Bearcats peaking at right time

After an up-and-down start to the month of April, Aledo’s Bearcat baseball team has put it all together in the last two weeks of the regular season as they’ve won four in a row while simultaneously securing the No. 1 seed in District 5-5A.

Aledo (20-10 overall, 9-3 in district) took care of Azle on the road with a 15-7 win on Friday, April 21, that included a nine-run eighth inning. They followed up that performance on Saturday, April 22, with a 2-0 shutout of Mansfield Lake Ridge as they celebrated Senior Day. On Monday, the Bearcats secured their spot atop the District 5-5A standings with another shutout victory, their ninth of the year, over Wichita Falls Rider, 7-0.

The Bearcats will conclude their 2023 campaign on Friday as they look to sweep Rider’s Raiders at Bearcat Field before starting their playoff bid next week. Friday’s season finale is slated for a 7 p.m. start.

Scoring late, feeling great

Having lost the first game of the series to Aledo at Bearcat Field a few days before, Azle sought to take Game 2 on their home field on Friday. The Hornets swarmed the Bearcats early, scoring six runs in the bottom of the first inning.

Following the six-run first-inning flurry by the home team, the Bearcats managed to find their way defensively as they kept Azle off the board for the final six innings of scheduled baseball.

However, offensively the Bearcats looked like a team who left their sticks at home. Aledo stranded six runners in the first six innings on top of going three-up, three-down in the fourth and fifth innings.

Trailing 6-0 with just three outs left to make something happen, Aledo rallied. Playing station-to-station baseball, the Bearcats used five base hits, a triple, a walk, and an error to cinch the game at six runs apiece and head for free baseball.

In the extra frame, Aledo devastated Azle’s pitching. Dylan Taylor started off the inning drawing a leadoff walk to put the go-ahead run on base. Brooks Burdine wore the 1-0 offering like a cheap suit in the following at-bat to put a pair of Bearcats on the bases with no outs on the board early in the frame.

With Azle’s hurler still struggling to find the zone, Boyd Thompson worked his way on by drawing a five-pitch walk to load the bases for the visiting team.

The shenanigans that followed was peak performance at the plate for the Bearcats.

With the bases juiced full of Bearcats and not an out on the board, Brooks Dwinell doubled to center to drive in a pair of runners. The 8-6 lead in the top of the eighth was the first of the game for Aledo.

But, the party was just getting started.

With runners on second and third, Trace Mazon hit a deep triple to center to drive in Thompson and Dwinell as Aledo went up by four runs.

With his younger brother already home, left-handed slugger Bosten Dwinell slashed a line drive down the right-field line as Mazon scored from third like he was out for a Sunday stroll in the park.

Feeling the pressure now, Azle began to crumble. Andrew Cambre hit a grounder to short, but the Hornet shortstop failed to wrangle the routine ground ball. The error allowed Cambre to reach easily as Dwinell advanced to third on the play.

With runners at the corners, Ryan Jones drew a walk that loaded the bases for the second time in the inning for Aledo.

With all three outs still in their back pocket and the bases full of Bearcats, Bryce McCain barreled a line drive to left in the first pitch of his at-bat. As Dwinell, Cambre, and Jones all crossed the plate, Aledo held a commanding 14-6 lead.

Having batted around, Burdine returned to the plate with a runner on and one out in the inning. He hit the 0-1 offering deep enough to center to drive in McCain for the Bearcats’ final run of the game for Aledo as they charged ahead, 15-6.

Arms race

Aledo’s pitching staff combined to toss 14 shutout innings against Mansfield Lake Ridge and Wichita Falls Rider. Connor Mitchell, Bosten Dwinell, McCain, and Thompson combined to blank Lake Ridge while surrendering just three hits and striking out five. McCain led the Aledo hurlers, fanning four batters in two innings of work while picking up the win.

Another stellar performance on the mound by a Bearcat starter against a district opponent was just what the doctor ordered when Matthew Clark took the hill against Rider on Monday. He tossed a complete-game shutout, giving up two hits and striking out eight.

Aledo 7, Wichita Falls Rider 0

Monday, April 24

Bearcats 000 221 2 - 7   8  2

Rider 000 000 0 - 0   2  2

Aledo hitting: Boyd Thompson 1-for-4; Brooks Dwinell 2 BB; Trace Mazon 1-for-3, SB; Bosten Dwinell 1-for-4, RBI; Andrew Cambre 2-for-3, 2B, RBI, BB; Ryan Jones 1-for-3, BB; Bryce McCain SB; Garrett Rester 2-for-3, 3 RBI.

Aledo pitching:  Matthew Clark 7.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 8 K.

Aledo 2, Mansfield Lake Ridge 0

Saturday, April 22

Lake Ridge 000 000 0 - 0   3   0

Bearcats 000 020 X - 2   4   0

Aledo hitting: Robert Burk 1-for-1; Mazon BB, SB; Luke Taylor 1-for-2, 3B; Dylan Light 1-for-2, RBI; Weston Nance 1-for-2, 2B, RBI.

Aledo pitching:  Connor Mitchell 2.0 IP, H; Bo. Dwinell 2.0 IP, BB, K; McCain 2.0 IP, H, BB, 4 K; Thompson 1.0 IP.

Aledo 15, Azle 7

Friday, April 21

Bearcats 000 000 69 - 15  13 3

Azle 600 000 01 -   7   8   2

Aledo hitting: Thompson 1-for-5, RBI, BB; Br. Dwinell 2-for-4, 2B, 2 RBI, BB; Mazon 2-for-4, 3B, 3 RBI, BB; Bo. Dwinell 1-for-4, 2B, RBI; Cambre 2-for-5; Jones BB; McCain 1-for-3, 3B, 3 RBI; Brady McAnear 2-for-2, RBI; Dylan Taylor BB, Rester 1-for-2; Brooks Burdine 1-for-1, 3B, 2 RBI, SB.

Aledo pitching:  Robert Burk 0.2 IP, 4 H, 6 R (2 earned), BB; Garrett Addington 1.1 IP, H, K; L. Taylor 2.0 IP, 3 K; Luke Saunders 4.0 IP, 3 H, R (earned), 2 BB, 7 K.