HURRICANE, W.Va. — Hurricane junior Owen Gress was near perfect in relief and came through with the game-winning sacrifice fly in the seventh as the Redskins defeated Bridgeport, 7-6 at Lola Meeks Field. The game was a rematch of the 2021 Class AAA state championship game, which was won by Bridgeport.
Tied at 6 with one out in the bottom of the seventh, Gress stepped to the plate with the potential winning run on third base. Gress lifted a fly ball to medium-depth center field and it was deep enough to score Chase Hager, touching off a celebration at home plate and on the base paths.
Gress took over the pitching duties with the Redskins trailing 6-3 in the fifth inning. He struck out six batters of the eight that he retired and he yielded just one hit.
Both teams scored runs on errors in the first inning. The lead would change hands three more times in a game that was played in wintry conditions. Played was briefly halted twice due to sleet that covered the field.
Trailing 2-1 in the third inning, Hurricane’s Luka Moore connected on a two-run home run to give the Redskins a 3-2 lead. Bridgeport scored the next four runs to take a 6-3 lead. An Anthony Dixon two-run single and a Drew Bailey solo home run put the Indians up by three runs in the fifth.
Hurricane (12-3) responded with a run in the fifth to trim their deficit to 6-4. In the sixth, Damian Witty’s two-run double evened the score at 6.
Bridgeport (4-2) outhit Hurricane 9-4, but the Indians committed four errors. BHS starting pitcher Ben McDougal struck out nine batters in four-plus innings. He left the game in the fifth when he was struck by a line drive.
Both teams were playing their second games of the day. Hurricane defeated John Marshall, 13-3. The Indians won at George Washington, 7-2.