Braves take win against Cats

But with a man on second and one out in the bottom of the sixth, the Wildcats struck out looking in back-to-back plate appearances in which senior reliever Drew DuPont got out of it for the Braves. Jasper also loaded the bases with one out in the bottom of the seventh before a popout and strike out ended the game for a 3-2 final score.

“We take too many fastballs — it’s not a secret, everybody knows it,” Jasper coach Terry Gobert said. “We got to learn to hit that pitch and we’ll keep trying — not the end of the world, that’s so much better for you to be in that position.

“I knew when I bunted Leuck (in the bottom of the seventh), if they got him out, it was going to take the bat out of Bradley’s hands,” Gobert continued. “But you got to trust your four and five, and I’d do it again. And I think (junior Will) Wallace and Wright will come through the next time — you got to like those odds.”

The Wildcats sent junior Andrew Noblitt to the mound Saturday, but he issued a couple of walks to start the top of the first, and after a clean top of the second was when the Braves came alive in the top of the third off an RBI single, RBI sacrifice fly and another RBI single.

Wright took over for Noblitt in the top of the fourth, not allowing any runs.

“It’s not painful to play high school baseball — at least it shouldn’t be on a day like this,” Gobert said. “I don’t want to take anything away from Tecumseh, they came in here to win and they beat us. (We) saw a good team, but we have to be able to match that — and I think we’ll be ready (for the tournament). If not, we’re wasting our time.”

Gobert noted the Braves are a good opponent and Jasper saw some good pitching on the afternoon, but now, the focus is on beating Washington, whom the Wildcats drew for their first game in Sectional 31 at Southridge.

He told The Herald the Wildcats want to put the ball in play, while also telling of the importance of the bunting game.

“There is so much you can’t control in baseball, but you can control your approach, your attitude — and I don’t think we did that very well,” he said. “So, we’ll work on that and our only concern is beating Washington — if it takes one guy, three guys, four guys, that’s what we want to do.”

Saturday

Prep Baseball

AT JASPER

Tecumseh 3, Jasper 2

Jasper 0-0-0 | 0-2-0 | 0 — 2-6-0

Tecumseh 0-0-3 | 0-0-0 | 0 — 3-7-1

JASPER: Giesler 1-2, 1 BB; Leuck 0-3, 1 R; Bradley 2-3, 1 R, HR, 2 RBI, 1 BB; Wallace 0-3; Wright 1-4; Brosmer 2-3; Kunz 0-1; Bueltel 0-1; Noblitt 0-2; Trevino 0-1; Atkins 0-2

TECUMSEH: Anglin 0-4; DJ DuPont 1-3, 1 R, 1 RBI; Drew DuPont 1-3, 1 R, 1 BB; Huddleston 1-3, 1 R, 1 BB; Julian 2-4; Bailey 1-3, 1 RBI 1 BB; Gogel 0-3, 1 BB; Oxley 1-3; Bender 1-3, 1 R

Pitching

Jasper: Noblitt (L) 3 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 6 K, 2 BB; Wright 4 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 4 K, 3 BB

Tecumseh: Bailey (W) 5 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 K, 1 BB; DuPont (S) 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 3 K, 3 BB