GAME’S FIRST RUN … Bryce Bolger slides home with Evergreen’s first run of the night. VIEW 109 PHOTOS OF THIS CONTEST FOR FREE AT WWW.THEVILLAGEREPORTER.COM
By: Joe Blystone
THE VILLAGE REPORTER
publisher@thevillagereporter.com
BRYAN (April 19, 2024) – A blade is a sharp item used to carve and slice with precision. Evergreen has a blade… as in Blade Walker, and the Vikings’ Blade gashed Bryan with a trio of two-run singles to support Brady Kanneman’s stellar pitching performance in the Vikings 10-1 victory over the Bears.
“We can’t get too high or get too low,” Evergreen coach Mark Cymbolin expressed. “We have to stay even keeled and show up with the right mindset every day from here on. That’s when someone will get you. If our focus is right, then we can do what we did today.”
Walker’s first big knock came with two-down in the first. A pair of walks and a Brady Kanneman single loaded the sacks, then Walker muscled a single into right center that plated the first two Viking runs against Bryan starter Cade Carlin.
Carlin didn’t give up another hit in the next three innings but Kanneman was nearly as good, allowing just three hits in the first three frames.
A two out infield hit from Noah Huard and another single by Jase Kepler in the third gave Bryan a pair of runners but Kanneman got Carter Dominique to pop to first to end the threat.
Bryan broke through in the fourth to chop the Evergreen lead in half. Carlin doubled up the left center field gap to open the inning and a sacrifice moved him to third.
Kanneman got Lazarus Lane on strikes for the second out but Carter Luce lined a 2-2 pitch to center for a base hit to make it 2-1.
However, the Vikings had an answer in a big way in the top of the fifth. Sean Rafferty drew a leadoff walk and after a wild pitch, Colton Robertson rifled a bullet into center off reliever Noah Huard, for an RBI single to make it 3-1.
After a stolen base and a Layne Vance single, Cory Kanneman’s fly ball made it 4-1. Bryce Bolger’s base hit put runners at the corners and with two down, Walker came through again driving a ball to deep center for a hit that marked both runners and gave the Vikes a 6-1 lead.
“We have been waiting for him to get going a little bit,” Cymbolin said of Walker’s huge night at the plate. “We tweaked his swing a bit and he’s getting dialed in a bit, he squared up the ball pretty well today.” “We’ve struggled sometimes with runners in scoring position and today we broke out a little.”
The outburst fed Kanneman’s energy on the mound as he retired the next nine Bryan hitters, six of which on infield grounders.
The Vikings tacked on four more in the seventh as each Kanneman singled around two Bryan errors, Walker’s third two RBI hit and Chris Shrader’s RBI grounder.
Brady Kanneman got the complete game win, allowing five hits and striking out five without allowing a walk.
“He’s a competitor, he’s been with me for three years and he knows what we need him to do on the mound and understands what it means to throw strikes,” Cymbolin said.
“He’s a winner. It’s great to have a kid like him that had a successful soccer season like they did, winning league and going to regionals, having him and some others that experienced that on our team.”
“They know what it takes to get to that level and the level we want to get to right now.” “It’s awesome to have him and experience the growth he has had in the last three years.”
He also helped his own cause at the plate with two hits to supplement Walker’s big night.
EVERGREEN 200 040 4 – 10 9 0
BRYAN 000 100 0 – 1 4 3
Records: Evergreen 3-0, (8-4 NWOAL), Bryan 6-4 (2-1 NWOAL)
WINNING PITCHER: B. Kanneman (7 innings, 5 hits, 1 run, 5 strikeouts, 0 walks)
LOSING PITCHER: Carlin (4 innings, 2 hits, 2 runs, 4 strikeouts, 3 walks) OTHER: Huard
LEADING HITTERS: (Evergreen) B. Kanneman – 2 singles; Walker – 3 singles, 6 RBIs; (Bryan) Carlin – double
