The team's status for the next round was still up in the air — or the clouds perhaps — because Post 23's second game was suspended for rain just before the start of the seventh inning.
Post 23 leads St. Louisville Post 804 8-5.
The win Thursday gave Post 23 its 40th victory of the season — something of a milestone for a team that is still building its reputation.
"That was one of the things we hoped to see going into this tournament is that we could win at least three and get us up to 40," Post 23 coach Jack Branon said. "Plus it gives us three wins here and last year we won one here."
In game one, Post 23 jumped out to a fast 6-0 lead in the second inning courtesy of three singles, two walks and a hit batter followed by an Aaron Hopper double.
Post 7 countered in the third inning, scoring five and causing Post 23 to bring in David Shultz in relief. Shultz, who played most of the season on Post 23's junior league team, pitched 6.1 innings, giving up three runs in the fourth, but holding Post 7 scoreless the rest of the way.
"Shultz pitched great," Branon said. "Other than the home run he gave up... once he settled in out there he was masterful. I thought his mechanics were great on the mound.”
Shultz came in for Justin Montgomery who gave Post 23 two scoreless innings to open the game.
"Once we got past the third or fourth inning I thought we were able to play very well defensively," Branon added.
Pitching wasn't the only thing going well for Post 23. The offense scored in bursts. Aside from the six-run second inning, Post 23 scored three runs in the fourth and five runs in the eighth inning.
Among the offensive highlights was a three-run home run by Zach Bukiewicz, who finished the game with five RBIs.
"We got some big hits out of (Bukiewicz)," Branon said. "The home run obviously is the one that is going to stand out. We had other guys hit the ball hard. Hopper hit the ball hard three or four times. (Adam) Wamsley is consistent. He had a few hits and got on base most of the time."
The situation for Post 23 — win or go home — is still unchanged after a loss on the first day of the tournament. Leading 8-5 in their current suspended contest however, Branon was unsure when play will resume.
The winner of the Post 23-Post 804 game was slated to play this morning at 9:30 a.m. but the current schedule of events was unavailable at press time.
Find more information at www.twitter.com/pdtsports as it becomes available.
JOHN STEGEMAN can be reached at jstegeman02@hotmail.com
Game 1
Post 23 060 300 050 — 14 15 2
Post 804 005 300 000 — 8 10 1
WP: Shultz LP: Johnson
Hitting Leaders
Post 23 — Bukiewicz 2-7 HR 5RBI, Wamsley 4-6, Hopper 3-5, Myers 2-3, Loop 2-3.
Post 7 — Knoblauch 2-3 HR 3RBI.
Record — Post 23 40-16
Game 2
Game suspended. Post 23 leads Post 804 8-5 at the start of the seventh inning.
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