Making their first 13th Region Tournament appearance since 2015, the Harlan Green Dragons may have been a tad nervous in an opening round game Tuesday against Barbourville at Knox Central.
The Dragons found themselves down 7-2 midway through the second inning and 8-3 midway through the fourth before storming back with a nine-run fifth on the way to a 12-8 victory.
“We came out really tight and really tense tonight. It was one of those things where as a coach you just have a gut feeling that your guys are a little nervous,” Harlan coach Lee Freyer said. “Barbourville took advantage of that early on. We knew once we settled in and got our feet under us, we would comeback. This team, to be as young as they are, never gives up. Good teams find a way to win when they have to. “
With the Dragons trailing early, junior Jared Moore restored order and gave the Dragons a chance to rally as he allowed only one hit and one run over 5 1/3 innings, while striking out five and walking four.
“Jared Moore came in early in relief and pitched an awesome game tonight. I believe it was his best outing of the season. He kept Barbourville off balance, got ahead early in the counts, and really pitched well,” Freyer said. “Offensively, against a team like Barbourville, I feel like the early innings we fell behind in the count too much. They really like to work ahead as pitchers and get you to swing at their pitch. (Coach Brandon) Hilliard does a great job with his pitchers. They stay in attack mode when they are on the mound. “
Donovan Montanaro led Harlan’s seven-hit attack with a double and single. Luke Luttrell and Brody Owens each added a double. Eli Freyer, Jared Moore and Jake Brewer had singles.
“It was good to see Donovan hitting the ball like we know he can. His ankle still isn’t 100 percent and that affects his swing a little. He’s had to make some mechanical adjustments and he’s starting to find his groove again,” Freyer said. “Brody Owens really had some good at bats tonight. His two run double really provided us with a spark. Also, Luke had some solid ABs and kept us in it offensively early on. We talk about execution a lot as a team, and Jake Brewer laid down a great safety squeeze during our big inning. His bunt got the guys going in the dugout. We ran the bases well tonight. Jake had three steals to lead us there. He’s becoming a really savvy baserunner. He’s got good speed, but he’s starting to understand the game more on the bases. It feels good to not play your best baseball and still win. Now we have to get back to work and get ready for Corbin.”
Connor West led the 12-15 Tigers with two doubles and two RBI. Colby Peters drove in three runs with a double. Ty Clark and Brayden Sowders added singles.
Harlan (23-11) will play Corbin on Thursday in the regional semifinals. The Hounds advanced with a 9-5 win over Jackson County in the opening game Tuesday. Kade Elam’s grand slam broke a tie and gave Corbin the win.
The game was the first for the Dragons in the regional tournament since falling 10-0 to South Laurel in the 2015 semifinals. The Dragons defeated Barbourville 4-2 in a first-round game that season. Harlan also won in the first round of the 2007 regional, defeating Lynn Camp 10-3, before falling 7-6 to North Laurel in the semifinals.
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Barbourville 250 010 0 — 8. 5. 3
Harlan 210 090 x — 12. 7. 2
Clark, Gray (2), Buchanan (5), Hillard (5) and West; Luttrell, Moore (2) and Owens. WP — Moore (3-2). LP — Gray.