Article was originally published in the Sylva Herald, March 10 edition
The Smoky Mountain Mustang baseball teams each won their opening season matchup against the Swain Maroon Devils last Thursday at Swain.
The varsity club was able to squeak out a 12-9 victory behind a strong, consistent offensive output. The Mustangs scored in all but the first inning of the contest, including a nine-run stretch through the third, fourth and fifth innings.
SM was led by Brylen Conlin, who was four of six at the plate, including four runs batted in, as well as pitching three solid innings in the starting role. Conlin opened the contest by lacing a first-pitch single over the shortstop’s head, for the first hit on the first pitch of the 2022 season.
“It is always great to start the season off with a win,” Coach Jeremy Ellenburg said. “Obviously there are some things we need to work on as a unit, but overall I’m excited about how the season started.”
Swain was able to hold their own and never allowed the Mustangs to feel too confident. The Maroon Devils scored in four of the seven innings, including a four-run fourth and three-run sixth.
Lincoln Sutton, Gavin McCoy, Zeb Fisher and Will Smith all had two for the Mustangs.
Cale Justice was the winning pitcher with three innings relief. Fisher pitched a scoreless seventh for the save.
The Maroon Devils spread the offense around, with five players placing themselves in the RBI column. Gabe Lillard, Brayden Ruis and Carson Taylor each earned two runs batted in.
The JV club was able to score an impressive 19 runs in their five-inning bout with the Maroon Devils, ultimately winning 19-4. This marks the first win for the JVs since 2019. They went winless in 2021 and lost their only matchup in 2020 before COVID-19 abruptly ended their season.
“It has been rough for junior varsity the past couple years, so to come out and play so well is incredibly refreshing,” Coach Scott Mitchell said. “This team is freshman dominant, so for them to play so loose and confident is a great foundation moving forward.”
The 10-run second inning by the Mustangs catapulted them into an 11-0 lead.
Starting pitcher Jackson Bowers was able to pitch two complete innings, finishing under 30 pitches before being removed from the game.
“At the time, we realized this was a good game to get everybody some game reps,” Mitchell said. “Jackson pitched phenomenally, and we wanted him to be ready for our next game if we needed him.”
