Ryan Burt was looking for something he could handle.
On a night Andrew Peugh kept hitters off balance with a steady diet of changeups and curveballs, Burt didn’t have much success in his first at-bat (pop up) or his second (hit by pitch).
Burt’s fortunes changed dramatically in his final plate appearance. As a result, the New Hope High School baseball team kept its season alive for another round.
Burt’s two-run home run to right-center field capped a three-run sixth inning that helped New Hope rally for a 5-3 victory against Mooreville in Game 3 of the second-round Mississippi High School Activities Association (MHSAA) Class 4A playoff series at Trojan Field.
The win pushed New Hope (25-5) into the third round where it will take on Ripley, which edged Pontotoc 7-6 in Game 3 on Monday. Game 1 of that series will be Thursday at a time and location to be determined.
“He kept me off balance all game,” Burt said. “Hats off to him. That’s a great team. That was a great pitcher. It was a fun series, but I was just looking for something to drive. Luckily I got it, and I got it pretty good. I am pretty speechless.”
Burt’s bat more than made up for it. The sophomore pitcher/infielder/outfielder drove a fastball in the middle of the plate to the right of the 345 marker in right-center field. The home run was markedly different than teammate Nick Sims’ two-run shot in the third inning. While Sims’ was a line drive that went to the left of the 325 on the left-field fence, Burt’s blow was a blast that evoked great New Hope home runs of the past.
The drama surrounding this one added to the
excitement.
New Hope trailed 3-2 entering the inning after Mooreville scored two runs in the fifth on a wild pitch. Down to their final six outs, New Hope rallied in the sixth thanks to a leadoff single to left field by Sims and a bunt single by Tyler Murphy. Up until that point, New Hope has scratched together only two hits against Peugh, so getting two runners on the start the frame was reason to celebrate.
The excitement stalled with an 0-1 count to Drew Pounders when Peugh picked Sims off second base. Sims stumbled getting back to the base and was tagged out on top of the helmet. Pounders kept the rally going by bouncing back from an 0-2 hole to drive a single up the middle. With two outs, Peugh tried to pick off pinch runner David Young from second base, but his throw went into center field. The ball got past the outfielder, which allowed Young to race home and sent Pounders to third. Burt made it hurt even more by depositing a home run deep into the night to ignite the home crowd and to send the Trojans streaming from the dugout.
“I am at a loss for words,” Burt said. “I am so thankful. My team was behind me. It has been so much fun. I am not ready for it to end.”
Burt said Peugh hadn’t thrown him very many fastballs in his first two at-bats. He said he really had been off balance due to the off-speed pitches. He said he didn’t miss when he saw his first true hittable fastball of the night. Burt said he was able to stay focused on his approach — middle to opposite field — despite not seeing many good pitches to hit. He was more than fine with getting out in front and pulling one to settle matters.
“If he did throw me one I could pull I just wanted to react to it,” Burt said. “I just reacted to it. We were encouraging each other. We said, ‘Stay up, stay up. Something big is going to happen.’ ”
The home run capped a roller coaster ride for New Hope coach Lee Boyd, who figured a pickoff play could be coming because the Trojans planned to bunt again in an attempt to advance runners to second and third with the heart of their order coming up. He said Sims’ stumble played a big part in getting erased at second base. In fact, he called it a “dagger,” but he credited Pounders for having a great at-bat to single.
When the second pickoff came, though, Boyd wasn’t sure what was going to happen.
“It was going to be close,” Boyd said. “I thought David was close enough. … It was a lucky break for us.”
Boyd also praised Murphy, who started on the mound for the Trojans. He said Murphy, a junior, hadn’t pitched many meaningful innings in district play this season, but he played an integral role by going 4 1/3 innings and keeping the Troopers (18-11) quiet. Sims came in and shut it down for the final 2 2/3 innings after pitching an inning in Game 2.
“I am very proud of Tyler Murphy,” Boyd said. “He has thrown four or five starts for us, but that is the first game that he has thrown that has meant anything.”
Boyd said another play of the game to rival Burt’s home run was Murphy’s three-pitch strikeout of leadoff hitter Andy Franks with the bases loaded in the fourth inning.
“He has been struggling with his breaking ball and he throws two of them in there for strikes,” Boyd said. “I am banking on him looking for another one, so we go back with a fastball praying he takes it and Murphy paints (the outside corner).”
Sims also credited Murphy and said there was no doubt he was coming into the game to shut things down. Like Burt, Sims said he wasn’t ready to see the season end, which made the win even sweeter, especially after Burt picked up him after he was picked off.
“I just had to shake it off,” Sims said. “That is what I tell everybody. If something bad happens, the way you react is the most important thing you can do.”
n Germantown 9, West Point 0: At Madison, Blake Dilmore scattered four hits in six innings Monday to lead the Mavericks (22-7) past the Green Wave (13-16) in Game 3 of their MHSAA Class 5A second-round playoff series.
Dilmore walked three and struck out nine to help Germantown eliminate West Point, which had only five hits.
Harrison Haley and Benjamin Bell had two hits for the Mavericks, who used a four-run fourth and a four-run fifth to break the game open.
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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