Story by Near Post Sports
The Eagles punched their ticket to the district final with an 8-0 victory Wednesday night over the Crestview Bulldogs.
They face Pace tonight for the title. First pitch is at 7 p.m. on the Navarre diamond. It’ll be their third clash this season – the two previous were decided by just one run apiece (5-4 Feb. 19 and 1-0 March 25), both victories for the Eagles.
Wednesday night, Niceville pitcher Wilson Perkins gutted out a mid-game sickness for a shutout, giving up just a single hit through 4-1/3 innings. Then lefty Kai Bailey came on in relief – inheriting a bases-loaded, one-out situation.
Escaping the fifth without giving up a run was a lynchpin to the victory, according to Eagles’ head coach Rod Taylor.
“That was the turning point of the game. Because it was a 3-0 game, and they (Crestview) still had a chance,” Taylor said. “Then we came in and scored a few more runs after that, and put the ball game away.”
The Eagles seem to be returning to form after a four-game skid earlier this month. They had success Wednesday night against Crestview’ side-arm pitcher Bryce Dolce and the three Bulldog relief pitchers used.
Two runs in the second inning, another in the third, but things took off in the bottom of the fifth. Dolce walked two batters before turning over the mound to relief pitcher Avery Dauphin with one out. Ethan Edge tagged a Dauphin delivery right back up the middle for a rally-starting RBI single. The Eagles’ eventually scored five that inning.
“Once we got the bats rolling, it’s just all momentum,” said Niceville catcher, junior Preston Murphy.
As for lining up against Pace for the title, Murphy is counting on his pitchers to continue with strong performances.
“I’ve got a lot of confidence going into the game tomorrow, if our pitchers show up similar to the way they did tonight,” he said.
Taylor said pitching will be the key between the Patriots and Eagles.
“Well, it all starts on the hill. It’s the guys on the mound who control the game,” he said. “We’re both pretty good offensively. We’re pretty fundamentally sound defensively. We’ve still got plenty of arms. It’s just a matter of them going out, being focused and throwing strikes.”
All photos by Stu Camp
