| Camden beats P-15's again, 8-7 Friday, July 03, 2009
By TOM DIDATO
Special To The Item
CAMDEN --- One inning after having run through a stop sign and being thrown out at home plate, Camden's Tyler Pike made up for his baserunning snafu by delivering the game-winning hit with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning as Camden knocked off visiting Sumter 8-7 on Thursday at American Legion Park.
The win was the second in a row for Camden over Post 15, which fell to 14-3 in League III play. The host improved to 9-8 and tightened its grip on third place in the circuit.
While Camden waited until the end to pull this one out, Sumter head coach Wallie Jones said the dye was cast earlier in the night.
"I think we left 13 on tonight," said Jones, whose team is 16-4 overall. "You can't leave 13 runners out there. But (Camden) was the better team tonight and they won."
Post 17 led, 6-4, heading into the eighth inning in a game in which it used a three-run bottom of the first to answer a Sumter run off Camden starting pitcher Will Graham. The Camden right-hander was sitting on 98 pitches when the guests took to the plate in the eighth.
Jeremy Buckner opened with a one-out single to right. Bruce Caldwell then doubled to the gap in left-center field before Camden head coach Dave Roberts elected to walk Tony Micklon for the second straight time, this time loading the bases with one gone. Patrick Gordon then hit a one-hopper which was misplayed by second baseman Stephen Carmon, allowing both runners to score while Micklon moved to third base on the play. Micklon came in with the go-ahead run on a wild pitch.
With Gordon on second with two outs, Michael Blackmon walked. That ended Graham's night at 115 pitches as Brody Boone took to the mound. The right-hander got Josh Hayden to foul out for the third out.
Boone would face the minimum four batters in his second relief stint of the season while picking up his first win.
Camden threatened in the eighth with Pike getting a leadoff single off Gordon, who came on in relief of starter Tyler Smith with two outs in the seventh. A walk to Boone followed before Gordon retired the next two batters to bring Tyler McElveen to the plate. McElveen then sent a two-strike pitch for a single to right field. Micklon came up throwing on the play as Pike headed for home. The throw was up the third base line, but it still allowed the catcher, Blackmon, to catch the ball in the air and tag Pike before he could get to the plate.
Following a scoreless top of the ninth, Robert McKinney collected his third hit of the night to open things while also bringing Jordan Montgomery onto the mound. The P-15's lefty would faced three of four left-handed batters for Camden.
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