For Marked Tree, the Xtra Innings tournament started out great as they took on Westside Greers Ferry at Valley View last Friday night. At least it went well for the first five innings as the Indians built a 3-0 lead on some very solid play. But then the six inning happened.

"We were completely in control," said coach Matt Wright of the game. "We were hitting well, Clint (Hawkins) was pitching great and everything looked good going into the bottom of the sixth."

At that point everything which could go wrong did as error after error as well as some simple bad decisions allowed Westside to go completely through their batting order as they scored run after run. Finally, by the time Hawkins struck out his final batter, Westside had pulled out in front 7-3.

"We had three errors and two bases on balls and that just killed us," said Wright. "And every error should have been a double play so they got seven unearned runs. We looked like world beaters till then."

Josh Dabney scored the Indians final run in the top of the seventh, but it was far from enough to salvage the win as the Indians fell 7-4.

"We came back and competed, Wright continued. "And we got some runs on, but the bottom of the seventh just took something out of us."

Hawkins took the loss as he struck out 13, gave up two hits and walked five.

Dabney led the offense with a 3 for 3 performance scoring one run. Loran Ghant was 2 for 4 with two steals and two runs while John Ed Turpin and Richie Tate were both 1 for 3 with both getting RBIs and Tate adding a run.

Marked Tree 6, Walnut Ridge 4

Ghant took the mound the next day when the Indians Traveled to Green County Tech for the first of their final two games against Walnut Ridge and Brookland.

"Ghant pitched 6 1/3 innings of excellent baseball," said Wright. "He only gave up six hits and was in control of the strike zone the whole game."

The Indians, the designated home team, went in front in the bottom of the second inning when Andrew Roach scored on a Michael Gray single. Gray then scored on a Ghant double for a 2-0 lead which they never relinquished.

The Bobcats came back with a run in the top of the third and the Indians responded when Turpin knocked in Hawkins for a 3-1 lead. Turpin, Roach and Gray added another run each in the fourth and fifth innings while Walnut Ridge scored additionally in the fifth for a 6-2 lead.

The Bobcats made a run in the final inning scoring two more times, but the Indians held on for the win.

"We only had two Ks so we had to work hard on defense to get the win," Wright concluded.

With the six hits and two strikeouts, Ghant gave up a walk and three earned runs. Tate pitched the final 2/3 innings, allowing one hit and a run.

Ghant and Turpin led the offense with 2 for 3 games, Turpin hitting a double, knocking in a run and scoring once while Ghant had a pair of two-baggers. Roach was 1 for 2 with two runs while Gray was 1 for 3 with two runs and two RBIs.

Marked Tree 5, Brookland 4

Immediately following the victory over Walnut Ridge, Marked Tree came back out for their final game of the Xtra Innings Classic against Brookland.

"We didn't play that well, but that was the third game in 24 hours," said Wright. "We played well enough to win, though. Richie was tired and didn't have much zip, but he still only walked three."

Ghant and Gray, the one two hitters, got the scoring going as they put the Indians up a quick 2-0. Neither team scored in the second. Then in the third, Marked Tree, the designated visitors, pushed across another two runs when Ghant and Will Johnson made it 4-0. The Bearcats' bats finally came alive in the bottom of the inning, scoring three runs to pull within one, 4-3.

The fourth inning saw both teams notch their final runs, Roach scoring the Indians' the last three stanza remaining scoreless for both teams, giving Marked Tree the 5-4 victory.

Tate finished the game with seven Ks while allowing five hits and three earned runs with three walks.

Turpin led the hitting going 2 for 3 with an RBI while Hawkins was 2 for 4 with a run and two stolen bases. John Roach was 1 for 1 with Ghant, Andrew Roach and Johnson all hit one run in two at-bats, Ghant scoring two runs and stealing three bases and Roach scoring once. Closing out the offense was Dabney who was 1 for 3 and Gray at Gray 1 for 4, one run and one RBI.

"Ghant hit well the whole weekend," concluded Wright. "He had six hits in three games while stealing three bases. And Gray is coming along. He's an athlete who gives us a lot of flexibility. Clint and John Ed and Richie are all coming on. And Josh Dabney is a pleasant surprise this year. He's worked harder than anyone else I've ever had and is hitting about .450 and is getting some solid, consistent contact.

"This group is showing a lot of character. They aren't the most talented bunch I've had, but they have the best work ethic of any team I've ever coached."