Eastfield came back to beat Richland 6-5 on April 24 after a slow start to win the first of their three-game series. The Harvester Bees won two of the three games to tie for No. 1 in the Dallas Athletic Conference with a record of 19-5 and 38-11 overall.
“That just shows you how gritty we are,” left fielder Michael Caputo said. “We’re a grimy group, and it’s fun to play with these guys. I know even if we’re down, you can’t count us out.”
A misplay off an assumed foul ball in the second inning resulted in a double for the Thunderducks, and the runner was brought home by the next batter up.
Richland loaded the bases and earned a run off a walk before the Harvester Bees could manage three outs. The bases were once again loaded for Richland in the third inning, but a catch from Caputo stopped them short.
Right fielder Aubrey Whitehead broke through with a home run in the bottom of the third.
“It felt good,” Whitehead said. “I struggled at the beginning of the year but it’s felt good getting back into rhythm. It’s really just a credit to my teammates, just to keep encouraging me, and we play so well as a team. That’s why we get so many wins.”
Center fielder River Curs hit it over the fence in the sixth inning for his eighth home run of the season. He’s second in home runs behind JJ Bush’s 10 hits, and just ahead of Whitehead’s six.
First baseman Payton Poole doubled and scored off of a double from Bush. John Jackson brought Bush in to pull ahead, 4-3. Whitehead hit a two-run double in the seventh to extend their lead.
The Harvester Bees limited the Thunderducks to two runs in the eighth to win the game.
Poole is currently leading the team with 55 RBIs and Caputo has the best batting average, hitting .433% out of 127 times on the plate. Caputo also leads with 55 runs, with Bush and Curs close behind at 54 each.
Jacob Prokarym opened up on the mound and allowed eight hits and three runs from 25 batters. Austin Noel was next up and let one hit and two runs through out of 14 batters and struck three out. Ryan Dyer closed out the last two innings, facing six batters without a single hit.
“I see how these guys come out and work every day,” Poole said. “I know the time’s there. I know the effort’s there, so it’s all about execution, and I think all of our guys are better than any guy that anyone else has.”
