Story and Photos by Rusty Ellis
The Livingston Academy Wildcats took York Institute’s best shot in the fifth inning on Thursday night, but answered back with a big inning of their own in a 7-4 win.
The Wildcats scored the opening run of the game on an error in the second inning before adding two more on two-run triple from Caleb Webb in the third inning.
After both teams were set down quickly in the fourth, York finally broke through with a four-run fifth inning, highlighted by Anthony Moon’s two-run single to take a 4-3 lead.
Webb knotted the score right back up in the bottom half with a solo blast to left field. Aaron Moffitt gave LA the lead on an RBI single at 5-4, and the Wildcats added two more runs to push the final deficit to 7-4 for head coach Jamie Loftis.
“We hit the ball well, and we made good plays in the field,” Loftis said. “I thought the fifth inning when they scored, when we came back and got four of our own, that was the turning point in the game.”
Another big performer was Hayden Ledbetter, as he came in during the fifth inning and helped close the game out from there. As far as what made him successful, Loftis kept it really simple.
“He came in and threw strikes,” Loftis said. “And that was exactly what we needed him to do, and that’s what he did.”
With regards to what he hopes to carry over from this game, Loftis wants to see his guys continue to make strides at the plate with postseason right around the corner.
“Hopefully, we keep taking care of business offensively,” Loftis said. “We’ve got Cookeville tomorrow night and we’ll see a really good pitcher, so we’ve just got to keep getting it done offensively.”
