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TORONTO -- A day after a rough outing against Edison, the Toronto baseball team bounced back with a strong performance against Burgettstown.
The Red Knights scored a run in the bottom of the first inning, and that proved to be all the offense the hosts needed as they came away with a 2-0 victory Thursday evening on senior night at the Knights' Baseball Complex.
"I could not be more proud of these kids," Toronto (15-6) head coach Brian Perkins said. "We had a good talk after yesterday's game, and the kids came out and wanted to compete. We did a better job than we did last night. We showed focus today, and we made the plays behind Blake, who had an excellent outing."
Blake Close went the distance to pick up the win for the Red-and-White. Close struck out five and walked five, while scattering three hits in seven innings.
The Blue Devils had chances to tie the score in the last two innings. Burgettstown had runners on and second third with two outs in the sixth, but Close battled back from a 3-0 count to record a strikeout to pitch himself out of harm's way. The visitors had a man reach base via a one-out walk in the seventh, but Close rose to the challenge once again. The junior retired the next two batters on a pop-up and a groundout to third to end the game.
"You can't pop the ball up," Burgettstown (9-3) head coach Doug Tunno said. "We just could not hit the ball. We only had three hits.
The hosts had six singles on the day, but they found a way to plate a pair of runs to win the game.
"They had two really good pitchers," Perkins said. "We found a way to push two runs across, and Blake and the defense made it stand up.
"We knew we were going to have to find a way to scratch across some runs. With the pitchers we were facing, we knew we were not going to be able to put up 10 runs, but we found a way to scratch across a couple of runs. The kids did a good job."
Brody Kuzior started on the mound for the visitors from Washington County, and he was saddled with the loss. Kuzior struck out one and walked one in 1 1/3 innings of work. He allowed one run on two hits.
Andrew Bredel relieved Kuzior with one out in the second inning. Bredel struck out eight without walking a batter. He allowed one run on four hits in his 4 2/3 innings on the mound.
A day after hitting 10 pop-ups in the loss to the Wildcats, the Red Knights hit just three against Burgettstown.
"We talked about that all day," Perkins said. "We worked in the cages. We hit off a tee. The kids responded. They put the ball in play. They were able to make things happen."
Logan Sloane, who had two singles in the win, led off the first for the victors by drawing a walk. He advanced to second and third on groundouts, and he scored the game's first run on a wild pitch giving the Red Knights an early 1-0 lead.
"It is the end of the year, and we have had a bad weather week," Perkins said. "I'm glad we were able to play. I'm glad we were able to pick up Burgettstown. They are a good team, and we were able to come away with the win."
The score remained the same until the fourth.
Close, who had two singles on the day, led off the inning with a single, and he stole second to move into scoring position. A strikeout resulted in the first out of the inning, and then Close moved to third on a groundout. Aiden Filby followed with an infield single scoring close to extend Toronto's advantage to 2-0.
"I did not know anything about them," Tunno said about the Red Knights. "I looked online. I have seen what they have done in previous years. They have done well. They had a couple of kids go to Ohio State. We decided to play this game at 10 o'clock this morning."
Maddox Gratchen tallied two singles for Burgettstown, while Tristin Roach collected one.
"I knew nothing about them," Perkins said about the Blue Devils. "They have a real nice team. It was a well played game, and we were fortunate enough to come away with the win."
Toronto was originally scheduled to play Wellsville Thursday, however, the Tigers had to cancel due to having to play an EOAC game at United.
Prior to the start of the game, Toronto honored it's two seniors -- Zane Kinsey and Sloane. Kinsey was not able to attend the game due to him competing at the qualifying meet for the OVAC Track Meet down at Red Devil Stadium in St. Clairsville.
"We have two seniors in Logan Sloane and Zane Kinsey," Perkins said. "It was great to be able recognize them today. They have meant a lot to our program. Unfortunately, Zane was not able to be here today due to them moving the OVAC Track Meet to Thursday. We are going to continue on with our season, and hopefully, we can win a couple of titles with them."
Sloane has signed to play baseball at Davis and Elkins, while Kinsey has signed to play football at Walsh.
The Cal Giffin Track and Field Championship Meet will be held Saturday at St. Clairsville. The field events are scheduled to start at 10 a.m., while the track events will start at noon.
Toronto is scheduled to play Columbiana at noon Saturday back at the KBC. The Red Knights and the Clippers will play just one game.
The Ohio sectional draw will be held Sunday afternoon.
"These games mean a lot," Perkins said. "You want to be playing your best ball come tournament time. Our kids are battle tested. We have played a heck of a schedule. Our kids are ready to go."
Toronto 2, Burgettstown 0
Burgettstown 000 000 0 – 0 6 0
Toronto 100 100 X – 2 6 0
BURGETTSTOWN (9-3): Kuzior LP (1 1/3IP, 1K, 1BB), Bredel (4 2/3IP, 8K, 0BB) and County. Gratchen 2S; Roach S.
TORONTO (15-6): Close WP (7IP, 5K, 5BB) and Derrington. Sloane 2S; Close 2S; Henry S; Filby S, RBI.