LEBANON — The big crowd at Doc Adams Field expected something different. Last season, Abingdon fell to Liberty Christian 3-2 in the Class 3 state quarterfinals, and Lebanon won the Class 1 state championship. Both teams are expected to be state contenders in the respective divisions in 2024, but they struggled at times Thursday evening.
You wouldn’t want to use a film of the game as an instructional video for kids. That being said, it was a thriller, with the Falcons flying out of town after holding on for a 16-15 triumph.
“I don’t think anyone expected this,” said Abingdon coach Mark Francisco. “Lebanon has a really good ballclub, and they’re very well-coached. Both teams walked many more guys than they would typically walk, and both teams hit the ball hard at times. It was good, bad, and ugly, kind of a hard game to describe.”
The teams combined for 31 runs, 19 hits, nine errors, 19 walks, six hit batters, 15 strikeouts, and 28 runners left stranded. There were five home runs, including almost three grand slams. How were there nearly three grand slams? Lebanon’s Eli Breeding ripped a homer with the bases loaded; however, a runner missed the plate, so it was changed to a three-run dinger. Yes, it was a wild game.
“It was a good back-and-forth baseball game between two good teams,” Francisco said. “It took too much of my life away; I’m getting too old for a game like that.”
The contest was scoreless with two outs in the second inning when Abingdon catcher Alex Hawkins blasted a three-run homer to straight-away center.
Two hit batters, and a walk loaded the bases with no one out for the Pioneers in the bottom of the inning. After a strikeout, Toby Baker delivered a run-scoring single to left. Breeding reached on an error to drive in another run. After another strikeout, Dagan Barton drove a 3-1 pitch out of the yard for a grand slam, and Lebanon went up 6-3.
With two outs, the Falcons scored a couple of unearned runs in the fourth. The Pioneers put the lead back at two, 7-5, on a run-scoring single by Nathan Phillips in the bottom of the inning.
Nine batters came to the plate in the fifth for Abingdon. They scored five runs on only two hits. Three walks and a hit batter contributed to the scoring, as the Falcons went up 10-7.
“Abingdon is a good baseball team; they never quit,” Lebanon coach Cody Compton said. They kept bringing out good arm after good arm. They threw four guys today.”
Breeding’s homer originally put Lebanon up one, but it was 10-all after the appeal that the runner missed the plate after five innings.
Abingdon added six runs in the sixth. A grand slam by Elijah Parks, a solo homer by Beckett Dotson, and another run scored on an error.
Down 16-10 in the bottom of the seventh, Lebanon didn’t quit. Two walks and a hit batter loaded the bases with one out. Breeding had an RBI single. Chance Parker followed with a two-run single.
“I’m proud of my guys; they didn’t quit,” Compton said. Our pitching and defense weren’t the best, but we came in and kept battling every at-bat. I felt we swung the bats well tonight. If we can clean up a few things, we can be a good ball team.”
After another walk, Phillips ripped a two-run single, and Lebanon was within one. Booker Steffey grounded into a fielder’s choice for the second out, with the tying run at third and the go-ahead run at first. Landon Turner then picked up a strikeout for the Falcons (2-0) to end the game and get the save. Dotson got the win in relief.
“Lebanon has some talented players, and they were competitive,” Francisco said. “It shows a lot about their character to come back and have the winning run at first, down six.
“I don’t know that I’ve experienced a game like this. At times, the way the ball was leaving the yard, it felt a little like slow-pitch softball. Both teams can learn from this.”
Isaac Godsey got the start and pitched into the fifth inning. Breeding, Carter Hess, and Baker threw in relief for the Pioneers. Hess was saddled with the loss for Lebanon (0-2).
“We’ll get better,” Compton said. “It was the first varsity start for Godsey, I thought he threw a great game. He did exactly what we needed him to do. We’re young, learning, and getting better every day.”