Tanner Reaves smacked two home runs, Sam Crain pitched into the seventh inning, and the 11th-ranked Blinn College baseball team held off Wharton County Junior College 7-5 in the semifinal round of the Region XIV South Regional on Saturday at Leroy Dreyer Field in Brenham, Texas.
The Buccaneers (41-13) advanced to the tournament championship, scheduled for 6 p.m. on Sunday, May 7, in Brenham. Blinn will take on the winner of Wharton County and Bossier Parish Junior College, who will face off at 2 p.m. on Sunday in the consolation bracket. If the Buccaneers win Sunday, they will move on to the Region XIV Super Regional, the final stop before the NJCAA Division I Baseball World Series. If necessary, a decisive title game will be played at 2 p.m. on Monday, May 8.
“I can’t say enough about how well we executed under pressure,” Blinn head coach Dusty Hart said. “Wharton played really well; we were just fortunate enough to make a few more pitches and get a few more big hits than they were.”
The biggest hits Saturday came off the bat of Reaves, the freshman infielder who pummeled his 13th and 14th homers of the year as part of a three-hit ballgame. Reaves smacked a two-run shot to left field in the bottom of the first to make it 2-0 and made it 6-2 with a solo blast to left in the fifth. Reaves also doubled in a run in the third and finished with four RBIs.
“I just like to see the fastball,” Reaves said with a smile. “I see the fastball, my eyes get big, and I just try to put the barrel on it and leave the rest up to God.”
Wharton pulled within 6-4 in the top of the seventh, and Blinn gave itself a bit of breathing room when freshman Brandon Bishop singled to center to drive in freshman Marshall Lipsey. The Pioneers scored once more in the top of the eighth to close out the scoring.
Crain, a left-handed sophomore, worked 6 2/3 effective innings in which he allowed four earned runs on eight hits with seven strikeouts and three walks. The Baylor commit improved to 5-2 on the year.
(Pictured: Blinn’s Sam Crain delivers a pitch during a game against Wharton County on May 6)
“My plan was to attack the zone and get ahead early,” Crain said. “I did my best to bear down, make my pitches, and get outs. I thought I executed decently well, and the end result is what matters in the end.”
Freshman Blane Zeplin got one out in the seventh and one in the eighth before freshman Cody Pfeffer came on for the save opportunity. Pfeffer continued his stellar season, getting the final four outs of the game while allowing one hit, one walk, and fanning two Pioneers for his fifth save. Pfeffer’s earned run average sits at 0.84.
“I just had to go out there, make the pitches, and let their hitters put the ball in play so our defense could get the outs,” Pfeffer said. “Sam did a great job, so when our number was called today – me and Zeplin – we just wanted to go out there and do a great job for Sam and the team and get the win.”
Sophomore Ryan Scott added a sacrifice fly for Blinn to make it a 5-1 ballgame in the third.
(Pictured: Blinn’s Marshall Lipsey smacks a base hit during a game against Wharton County on May 6)
Lipsey also had a good day for the Bucs, going 4 for 4 with a pair of doubles, two runs, and a walk. Bishop had two hits.
“We have to have a short-term memory (Sunday),” Hart said. “This game doesn’t have anything to do with the championship game. We’re going to have to come out and make our pitches, get base hits, and be prepared for a battle.”
Blinn has competed in intercollegiate athletics since 1903 and captured 43 NJCAA national championships since 1987.
