Four wins over two days sent the Harlan County Trailer Park Boys (Harlan County’s 18-under team) to the Sevierville Bash Tournament title over the weekend.
“I’m real proud of our boys, not for just this weekend but the way a lot of them have bought in since our last game and put the work in and it showed this weekend,” Harlan County coach Scotty Bailey said. “That’s where it all starts. We went 4-0 and won the championship 12-0 against a good Express team. We had a tough bracket, but the boys wanted to play this weekend and that’s what they did.”
Jonah Swanner earned tournament most valuable player honors as he hit .700 during the tournament. The Harlan County defense was all excellent with no errors in four games. Pitching was also good as Harlan County allowed an average of three runs per game with junior Alex Creech winning three games.
Harlan County opened with a 4-3 win over SMA Turpin as Will Cassim drove in three runs on two hits. Swanner also had two hits while Tristan Cooper and Creech had one each.
Cooper gave up two hits in 2 2/3 innings on the mound. Creech allowed one hit over 1 2/3 innings to earn the win. Freshman Zayden Casolari allowed two runs on five hits in 1 2/3 innings. Swanner picked up the save as he allowed one run on one hit in one inning.
Harlan County rallied from a 5-0 deficit to defeat SMA Browning 7-6. Josh Duckworth pitched a complete game, giving up eight hits while striking out six and walking six to earn the win.
Swanner led Harlan County at the plate with two singles. Creech had a double. Cooper, Samuel Henson, Duckworth, Gunner Burkhart and Aiden Craig added one single each.
Cooper and Creech teamed on a four-hitter over 11 innings as Harlan County edged Wow Factor 4-3. Cooper allowed one earned run on two hits over seven innings, while striking out 12 and walking six. Creech pitched four shutout innings, giving up two hits while striking out three and walking two.
Swanner, Cooper and Creech each had two hits. Cassim and Isaac Kelly added one hit each.
Harlan County exploded for 10 runs in the second inning to rout Express 12-0 in the championship game.
Creech allowed two hits over three innings, with five strikeouts and one walk.
Mason Himes, Burkhart, Henson and Creech each had two hits in the win. Swanner added a double. Chance Sturgill, Cooper and Isaac Kelly had one hit each.
“They were great defensively with no errors in four games. That was something that really stuck out to me,” Bailey said. “We also did a great job on the mound. Cooper threw the ball great this weekend and had a total of 13 strikeouts in two outings. Creech really came out in control when he was on the mound. I was really proud of Duckworth and Casolari for how they came out and hit spots and threw for us. Those are two guys I think will get a lot of innings on the mound for us this year in varsity if they keep working. Swanner moved into a closer role with him having a save in the first game against a good Turpin team. I’m proud of how he’s bought in and showing everyone the type of player he is — in the field, at the plate, on the bases or now in the mound, I think he’s showing how special of a player he is. I’m proud of the boys. This is our second tournament ever for our summer ball team and we got us a championship against some quality competition.”