Congratulations to Grayson on its huge win! That is awesome!
Congrats also to Bo Coffman for his great performance at the plate! A walk leading to a run, a single, and a 2-run triple -- can't ask for much more than that!
From the Grand Junction, CO paper:
Winning math
Hot bats, strong pitching lead Grayson to easy win
By PATRICK BAHR
The Daily Sentinel
Monday, May 26, 2008
If a team can score at least two runs in every inning, it has a good chance to win.
On the other side of that, if a team can hold an opponent to one or no runs in every inning, it also gives it a good shot to win.
In the nightcap of Sunday’s Alpine Bank Junior College World Series slate, Grayson County (Texas) Community College did both, defeating Hagerstown (Md.) Community College 18-2 in five innings.
The Vikings’ offense was unstoppable, scoring 2, 3, 2, 7 and 4 runs in the five innings.
“We finished up our regional tournament with hot bats and it just continued,” Grayson first baseman Alex Johnson said.
One of the many Grayson batters to have a solid night was shortstop J.D. Alfaro, who went 3 for 5 with four RBI and three runs scored.
Alfaro was solid in the field as well, with five assists — including all three in the fourth inning.
“I was seeing the ball well and was able to get on it,” Alfaro said. “Anytime you can make a play in the field, it gives you confidence to come in and hit.”
Alfaro wasn’t alone in displaying his fielding skills as the Vikings kept the momentum away from Hagerstown by getting outs early in the game. In the first, center fielder Shaun Garcia and right fielder Bo Coffman both made running catches as part of a 1-2-3 inning.
Conrad Flynn was the beneficiary of the solid defense, allowing five hits and striking out four in five innings.
“I think, more than anything, our guys were ready to play.” Grayson coach Dusty Hart said. “Everyone has had a chance to get on the field and show what they could do and our guys felt left out a little bit. I think they just made the game not bigger than it was. We played the same we played all year.”
Hagerstown fell victim to the Vikings’ strong all-around play and let the game get away early. Down 7-1 heading into the fourth inning, the Hawks started to make mental errors, which contributed to the Vikings’ seven runs in the inning. In consecutive at-bats, Hagerstown lost a ball in the lights, then had a line drive bounce out of second baseman Matt Greene’s glove.
Mistakes aside, the Vikings still knocked 16 hits in the game.
“They totally dominated. They hit good pitches, they hit bad pitches. They hit everything,” Hagerstown coach Scott Jennings said. “We had a few chances to get out of a few innings here or there but we couldn’t make a play.”
Hagerstown falls into the losers’ bracket to play the loser of today’s Chipola and Alvin game at 10 a.m. on Tuesday.
“We had some good hits, but they were the better team,” Jennings said.
Grayson stays in the winners’ bracket and will play the winner of the Chipola/Alvin game.
Hart is aware of the talent both teams have.
“(Chipola is) the defending national champions, and we know all about Texas baseball, so you are talking two of the best ball clubs in the nation,” Hart said. “We will have to play better Tuesday than we did today.”
