HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL: Barnett Leads Richlands To Glory

WARDELL, Va. – It seemed fitting that Jordan Barnett drew the bases-loaded walk which enabled Richlands’ baseball team to stay unbeaten with a 3-2 win over Abingdon Friday in the Southwest District finals at Southwest Virginia Community College.

Not just because Barnett scored the first two runs and picked up his 11th straight win with four powerful innings out of the bullpen, but because of what happened off the field.

Barnett’s uncle, Greg Burton, the man who Barnett referred to as “my dad” in a postgame interview, died early Thursday morning.

“He would have wanted me to be out here playing, not mourning,” Barnett said. “Being out here and playing baseball has really helped take my mind off what happened. It’s given me something to occupy my mind.”

Barnett, now 20-1 over the last two years, was in danger of taking the loss when Zach Witt’s one-out single in the top of the sixth drove Matt Rasnake home to give the No. 2 Falcons (16-7) a 2-1 lead.

But the top-seeded Blue Tornadoes again showed the grit and steel which characterizes a 22-0 team in close games. They reached Abingdon ace Justin Malone for a tying run in the sixth on two singles and Ethain Keene’s infield out, which plated Barnett.

In the seventh, Blayke Wilson drew a one-out walk off reliever Taylor Read (4-1) and scooted to third when Bradley Strong’s grounder was booted for the Falcons’ only error.

Reliever Nathan Hagy walked Christian Hearl on four pitches and then faced Barnett. With the count at 3-2, Barnett showed the discipline of a batter hitting better than .500, letting a fastball sail outside for the winning run.

“I wanted to get a hit,” Barnett said, “but there’s nothing wrong with a walk in that spot, either. That wins the game, too.”

Richlands coach Brad Strong pointed to his team’s ability to hit according to game situations as a key. He particularly praised Keene, who shortened his swing with two strikes and runners in scoring position to produce a bouncer to second that was guaranteed to tie the game.

“We work on hitting to the right side all winter,” Strong said.

While Abingdon coach Mark Francisco was proud of his team’s effort against an opponent which drilled them 10-1 and 9-2 in the first two meetings, he was realistic enough to see the plainly-printed bottom line.

“Just like the first two times,” he said, “I have to say hats off to Jordan Barnett and Richlands.”

Both teams open Region IV play at home Tuesday, with the Blues playing either Magna Vista or Tazewell and the Falcons taking on Salem.

Abingdon 100 001 0—2 5 1
Richlands 100 001 1—3 6 2
Malone, Read (7), Hagy (7) and Payne. Sizemore, Barnett (4) and Elswick. W—Barnett (11-0). L—Read (4-1).

Carroll County 2, Tazewell 1

Chris Lineberry’s two-out RBI single in the top of the seventh inning snapped a 1-1 tie as No. 4 Carroll County (13-10) won the third-place game over No. 3 Tazewell.

Brett Anauo (3-3) and Drew Webb combined for a four-hitter, with Webb working out of a bases-loaded jam in the bottom of the seventh to pick up his third save. Webb whiffed Taylor Herald with a full-count fastball to end the game in dramatic fashion.

“Well-played game,” Cavaliers coach Joe Tompkins said. “We played good defense and pitched well. If we can get a little more hitting, I think we’ll play well [in the regionals] next week.”

The Bulldogs (13-9) hurt their chances in their last at-bat with two mental errors. One was a first-pitch swing after a missed sign that led to a fielder’s choice; the other was a runner getting picked off second for a critical second out.

Coach Lou Peery was understandably steamed after the game.

“Too many guys playing their own game, listening to too many voices,” he said.

Trey Lambert (3-2) was a tough-luck loser for Tazewell, scattering 11 hits.

Carroll County 001 000 1—2 11 1
Tazewell 000 010 0—1 4 0
Anauo, Webb (7) and Robinson. Lambert and Moore. W—Anauo (3-3). L—Lambert (3-2). S—Webb (3).

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