The Green County Dragons Varsity baseball team used a strong seventh-inning surge to claim a 5-1 road victory over the Nelson County Cardinals Varsity on Tuesday.
Nelson County struck first in the bottom of the third inning, when Kaden Simpson grounded out to bring home a run and give the Cardinals an early 1-0 lead.
Green County answered quickly in the fourth. Drew Squires lined a single down the left field line, scoring a run and evening the score at 1-1.
The game remained deadlocked until the seventh, when the Dragons broke it open. Timely singles by Carter Allen, Cash Jones, and Squires fueled a four-run frame that put Green County ahead for good.
Tatum Durrett was stellar on the mound for Green County, going the distance with a complete-game effort. The lefty scattered four hits and allowed just one earned run over seven innings, striking out two and walking two to earn the win.
Nelson County starter A. Balog kept the Dragons in check through six innings, allowing one run on six hits while striking out nine and issuing six walks. Reliever C. Geoghegan took the loss after giving up two runs on one hit in just a third of an inning.
Green County’s offense came alive with nine total hits. Squires and Jones led the charge, each going 2-for-4 with two RBIs. The Dragons showed discipline at the plate as well, drawing nine walks—three players (Andrew Houk, Houston Hodges, and Jones) each reaching via free pass twice.
Defensively, Green County was flawless, committing no errors. Houk anchored the defense with a team-high 10 chances in the field.
For Nelson County, Simpson, Trey Sparrow, E. Rogers, and D. Minter each recorded a hit in the losing effort.
The Dragons punch their ticket to the championship game of the 5th Region Tournament. This is the first time since 2002 that Green County has made it to the finals, where they topped LaRue County to advance to the State Tournament.
(GameChanger- Dick’s Sporting Goods)