By CHUCK LARSEN
Sports Editor
YUKON – Clinton ended Chickasha’s short Red Dirt Tournament run Friday afternoon with an 11-5 win to end their summer season. As in Thursday’s 9-6 first-round loss to McLoud, Mickey Edward’s team just didn’t play well in spurts and made too many mental mistakes.
“We went 25-9 through the season then came out here and laid back-to-back eggs,” a frustrated Edwards said after the game. “That was very disappointing.”
The problems started right out of the blocks.
Clinton batted first and scored twice when starter Chance Thomas walked three hitters and gave up an RBI single and catcher Landon Thomas’ throw to second sailed into center, allowing the second run.
Christian Fincher came on with two on and no one out and got the Chicks out of the jam and they answered in the bottom half with a run on Mike McCrackin’s double and Colin Hightower’s RBI single.
But Clinton scored two more in the second on a pair of doubles by Jake Lee and Chris Faulkner and a wild pitch and the Chicks went in order in the home half.
An inside double play killed a Clinton rally in the third and Chickasha scored again on Hightower’s second RBI single to keep themselves within striking distance at 4-2.
But the wheels started to fall off as the Reds scored three runs in the fourth on three singles and three errors, held the Chicks off again in the home half and scored an insurance run in the fifth on Jarret Richert’s RBI double.
Chickasha finally got something going in the home fifth when Hightower launched a two-run rocket over the fence in left, his second dinger to the same spot in two days.
Chet Nye reached on an error then scored on Fincher’s triple to the left-center field fence but the Chicks couldn’t get Fincher in.
Clinton scored three more runs in the sixth on back-to-back doubles by Ben Perez and Lee and a triple by nine-hole Ethan Pool, who scored on an infield groundout for the Reds’ eleventh run.
The Chicks batted with game time expired and left Bear Neito, who singled in a pinch-hit role, stranded.
Fincher took the loss, giving up nine runs on eleven hits, two walks and three hit batsmen. Like Thursday, pitching and some sloppy defense did the Chicks in.
“Any time we scored five or six runs like we did this weekend we should win,” Edwards said.
“We had a good season going 25-9 but we only put up three zeroes (scoreless defensive innings) in thirteen innings the past two days. We had trouble throwing strikes with anything but fastballs and when you get behind in the count and you have to throw the fastball, good teams are going to be able to hit it and that’s just what they did.”
With Red Dirt officially now done, the Chicks will play one more set of exhibition games on July 6 and 7 with Mark Ward’s Elk City-based OK Travelers, last year’s U18 Elite National Champions.
“We’ll take a week off then play their 18- and 16-year old travel teams in a home and home series,” said Edwards, whose younger brother, Dan, plays on the Elite U18 team. (Young Edwards and Verden teammate Dillon Wilson also played on the 66-7 national championship team last year.)
“We’ve played 36 games in five weeks and that will give the kids a chance to get their legs back. Then we’ll see what we can do.”
Sports
Clinton ends Chicks’ Red Dirt season
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THURS, SEP 9
BSB-Am-Po, Ninnekah @ Fletcher WB tournament (TBA)
BSB-Verden @ Geronimo tournament (TBA)
SB-Alex hosts Elmore City (4:30 start)
SB-Am-Po, Verden @ Sterling tournament (TBA)
SB-Chickasha @ OU HOF tournament (TBA)
SB-Chickasha MS hosts Noble (5:00)
SB-Ninnekah @ Lindsay tournament (TBA)
VB-Chickasha HS/MS @ Cement (4:00 start)
XC-Chickasha @ Cameron (4:30 start) -
O-State finds go-to receiver in Blackmon
Justin Blackmon had the humblest of goals in Oklahoma State's season opener. Even a single catch would have made him a happy man.
He ended up with so much more. Blackmon caught eight passes for 125 yards and three touchdowns in the Cowboys' 65-17 win against Washington State on Saturday night. He also picked up a blocked punt and scored on that, too.
Even after his career day, Blackmon isn't getting ahead of himself.
"That was just one game," he said Monday. "The next game, it could be somebody else being that guy, having numbers like that." -
Mighty-mites to sponsor scrimmages, food drive
The Chickasha Mighty Mite Football Association will sponsor a food drive in conjunction with several scheduled scrimmages Saturday.
Scrimmages will start at 10 a.m. at the Chickasha Sports Complex. Fans are asked to donate a non-perishable food item or $2 for entrance into the complex. Food and money donations will go to soup kitchens at Lighthouse Ministry and Cornerstone Church.
The scrimmages will feature eight to 10 teams from Chickasha, as well as teams from Andarko, Elgin, Weatherford, and Lawton. -
Storms empty Memorial Stadium early
The first night of real football ended early when Thursday’s storms blew into Chickasha, forcing the cancellation of the Chicks' freshman game with Anadarko.
The cancellation was announced it at the end of the third quarter of the eighth grade game, and they tried to finish that one, but when the Warriors scored with just under three minutes left to extend to 38-14 under threatening skies, the officials said “enough” and sent everyone home. -
Wort adds British flair for No. 7 OU
Football is king where Oklahoma linebacker Tom Wort is from. Just not American football.
Wort’s father would regularly bring footballs back to England from his business trips to the U.S., feeding his son’s obsession with the game played an ocean away. Wort would promptly get them confiscated by the headmaster. No room for that at recess.
“I’d be playing around with it on the playground, I’d be playing catch and he came and took it away from me because he said that because of the point, if it hits someone, it might hurt them,” Wort said. -
Mount St. Mary's: Too big of a hill to climb
Chickasha’s volleyball team turned a much-needed corner at Mt. St. Mary’s Thursday but still came up short, losing on the road in four tough games.
The Chicks lost games one and two by identical 19-25 scores and then came back for a 25-23 win in game three. They dropped game four 23-25 for their tenth match loss of the year. -
UTAH STATE at OU
Line: Oklahoma by 34.
Series Record: Oklahoma leads 4-0.
Last Meeting: Sept. 15, 2007, Oklahoma 54-3
What's at Stake
Oklahoma can become the seventh Division I program to reach 800 wins if it avoids starting a second straight season with an upset loss to a Utah-based team — last season it was BYU at Cowboys Stadium. The Aggies are trying to win their season opener for just the fourth time in 24 tries and the first time since 1997.
Key Matchup -
Lady Chicks' bats heat up in 7-4 win
Chickasha’s softball team secured its third win of the season Thursday just before thunderstorms rolled across into town and drenched the diamonds.
After another slow start, this one against Guthrie in conference play, the Chicks turned things completely around for a solid, 7-4, comeback win.
“We got the game in then got us out,” Chick coach Jimmy Darnell quipped. “The storms and lightning were coming in pretty quick.” -
QB Roethlisberger suspension reduced
NEW YORK (AP) — Ben Roethlisberger's suspension has been cut from six games to four by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.
The Pittsburgh Steelers' star quarterback met with Goodell early Friday and was told he could return on Oct. 17 against Cleveland.
Roethlisberger was suspended in April for violating the league's personal conduct policy, but Goodell said at the time he would review the player's behavior over the next few months. Goodell was satisfied that the quarterback has followed the league's guidelines and stayed out of trouble. -
SCORECARD
SAT, SEP 4
BSB-Am-Po, Ninnekah, Verden @ Hydro-Eakly tournament (TBA)
SB-Ninnekah hosts Verden (noon)
SB-Am-Po @ Maysville (11 a.m. start)
SB-Chickasha HS/MS tournament (TBA)
SOC-USAO v Emmanuel College @ Union, TN (1:00, 3:00)
SUN, SEP 5
BSB-Am-Po, Ninnekah, Verden @ Hydro-Eakly tournament (TBA)
MON, SEP 6
BSB-Am-Po, Ninnekah, Verden @ Hydro-Eakly tournament (TBA) - More Sports Headlines
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