Perfecto!!

Cole Strikes Out 12 of 15 Batters Faced

By Will Johnson

Messenger Reporter

KILGORE – To say Dylan Cole had a night to remember would be the understatement of the year. First, the Kennard Tigers blasted the Union Hill Bulldogs 10-0 to win Game One of the best-of-three Regional Finals series.

Second, Cole got the start in Game One. Third, he was 1-1 at the plate with a triple and three RBI.  

Fourth – and undoubtedly – the most impressive aspect of his Thursday night performance was the fact he threw a perfect game.

Cole only threw 59 (42 strikes) pitches through five innings of work, didn’t give up a run, didn’t walk anybody and struck out 12 of the 15 batters he faced. Cole was so good, in fact, he only allowed two batters to work an at-bat to a full count.

Logan Dunn led off the game for the Bulldogs and popped up in foul ground to first baseman Ryan Pilkington. Saige Hendrix was up next and Cole caught him looking on a nasty pitch for strike three. Matthew Massingill was the next batter to step into the batter’s box and he managed to work Cole to a full count. On the payoff pitch, however, Cole froze him for a called third strike to bring his teammates in from the field.

Dunn was on the mound for Union Hill and he ran into trouble in the first inning. Jaden Kulms led off for the Tigers and drew a five-pitch walk. Elijah Dowdy followed Kulms in the order and was hit by a pitch to put runners at first and second with no outs.

Keyton Lumbreraz was up next and sacrificed the runners to third and second, which brought Cole to the plate. On the first pitch he saw, the Kennard pitcher roped a shot into the left field gap to drive in Kulms and Dowdy.

With Ryan Pilkington at the dish, a passed ball allowed Cole to scamper home and make the score 3-0. Pilkington lined out to left, but Caleb Alfred followed with a single up the middle. Adrian Montero also ripped one up the middle but Dunn was able to limit the damage as he coaxed Nick Farmer to ground into a 4-3 force to end the inning.

Cole was back at it in the second as he struck out the side. First, he caught Daniel Dunn looking at strike three. Then, Carlos Mendoza jumped out to a 2-0 count but he wound up swinging at a pitch out of the strike zone for the second out while Eli Mendoza swung and missed on three straight pitches to retire the side.

It looked like Dunn had shaken off the jitters in the second as he fanned both Nick Dowdy and Kulms for two quick outs. E. Dowdy followed with a single to center and with Lumbreraz at the plate, he moved to second on a wild pitch. He took third on a passed ball and raced home on another wild pitch.

Lumbreraz would reach on an error and moved to second when Cole walked. Dunn, however, got Pilkington to ground into a fielder’s choice to limit the damage, but at the end of two, the Tigers led 4-0.

In the top of the third, Cole continued his dominance over the Bulldog hitters. Caleb Simmons got ahead in the count 3-1, but struck out looking. After that, Cole only needed six pitches to strike out both Devin Espinoza and Macen Clark to end the Union Hill at-bat.

In the bottom of the third, Kennard put the game away. Alfred led off with a triple and worked his way across the plate when Montero grounded into a 5-3 force. Nick Farmer drew a walk and moved to second on a N. Dowdy bunt. On the play, a throwing error allowed Farmer to advance to third.

A single from Kulms knocked in Farmer and moved N. Dowdy to third. Kulms stole second and then E. Dowdy drew a walk. That was all for Logan Dunn as Daniel Dunn came on in relief. A wild pitch gave N. Dowdy the chance to race home while Kulms took third on the play and E. Dowdy strolled down to second.

Lumbreraz drew a walk to load the bases and when Cole lofted a sacrifice fly to left, Kulms tagged up and scored while E. Dowdy moved over to third. A double steal with E. Dowdy and Lumbreraz worked like a charm as E. Dowdy slid home to extend the Tigers’ lead. Lumbreraz swiped third and an error at the plate allowed Lumbreraz to cross the dish, making the score 10-0.

Pilkington singled but Alfred lined out to center to end the inning. The damage was done, however, and it was more than enough for Cole.

In the top of the fourth, Cole fanned L. Dunn on three pitches while Hendrix tapped back to the mound for the second out. Massingill followed in the order and he also grounded out back to Cole to end the Union Hill half of the innng.

With the score still 10-0, the Tigers threatened again in the bottom of the frame, but L. Dunn managed to keep Kennard in check. Montero struck out to lead things off, while Farmer grounded out. N. Dowdy and Kulms both walked. A wild pitch advanced the baserunners, but E. Dowdy grounded out to bring the fourth inning to a close.

Needing only three outs to end the game, Cole went back to work in the top of the fifth. He struck out D. Dunn and C. Mendoza on a combined seven pitches for two quick outs. For an encore, he got E. Mendoza to foul off two pitches and then blew a third strike past the right-hander to end the game, giving the Tigers a 10-0 win and a 1-0 lead in the best-of-three series.  

Dylan Cole picked up the win in five innings. He was perfect on the mound as he didn’t give up a hit or allow anyone to reach base while striking out 12 of the 15 batters he faced.

Logan Dunn took the loss as he pitched 2.1 innings, giving up nine (eight earned) runs on seven hits. He also struck out two and walked four. Daniel Dunn pitched 1.2 innings in relief and gave up one run on one hit. He struck out one and walked three.

At the plate, the Tigers were led by Cole who was 1-1 with three RBI and a run scored. Jaden Kulms was 1-2 with two runs scored and an RBI, while Caleb Alfred was 2-3 with a run scored.

The two teams were back at it again on Friday, but as of press time a final score was unavailable.        

Will Johnson may be contacted via e-mail at [email protected].