Greater Beckley Christian One Win Away From First-Ever Baseball State Tournament Berth

The opening game of the Class A Region 3 Championship series was far from a work of art Thursday afternoon at Linda K. Epling Stadium.

Greater Beckley Christian and Webster County were not concerned about beauty.

The main focus of the Crusaders and the Highlanders was getting a win to take a one game lead in the best-of-3 series.

Advantage Greater Beckley Christian.

Surviving six errors in the contest, the Crusaders scored two runs in the bottom of the sixth to walk away with a 9-7 win.

Game two will be back at Linda k. Epling Stadium at noon Friday, weather permitting.

"We didn't play our best game today, but they buffaloed and carried the sword, like they have all year," Greater Beckley head coach Blain Smith said. "We still have one more. That has been the goal since the start."

Smith explained the references to "buffalo" and "carry the sword" in regards to his team.

"You have a buffalo and the cow. When you go into the storm, the cow moves and runs out of the storm. The buffalo runs into the storm," Smith explained. "That is what we try to do. We try and buffalo and run into the storm. Carry our sword is our walk with (Jesus) Christ daily and to glorify (Him) in everything we do."

Resilience and fight were definitely a key part of the winning equation for Greater Beckley (16-10) Thursday.

The Highlanders made the first move, scoring three runs to take a 4-1 lead in the top of the second. Two of the runs coming on a Crusader fielding error.

However, Greater Beckley responded with four runs in the bottom of the third inning.

Paul Fox's ground ball plated the first fun before Kaden Bolen smacked an RBI-single. Drew Fitzwater then tripled home Bolen to tie the game. Fitzwater scored on a single from Jayden Nguyen for as 5-4 lead.

The lead did not last in the back-and-forth struggle.

A single, a walk and another Greater Beckley error, all keyed a three-run inning for Webster County who regained the lead, 7-5.

Again, the advantage was temporary for the Highlanders.

A one-out single, followed by a walk came back to haunt Webster County when a wild pitch and a passed ball evened the game at 7-7.

"We had some crucial mistakes that cost us the ballgame. We played well overall, but we made the most mistakes and that cost us today," Webster County head coach Jerry Skidmore said. "The kids were just not themselves today. We are better than we played today."

Amidst the errors, walks and passed balls, Greater Beckley garnered the decisive lead in the bottom of the sixth inning on a double from Eli Gunter.

Isaiah Lewis walked stole second and third before scoring on Gunter's gapper. Gunter then moved up on a wild pitch and scored on Bolen's ground out.

"I would say this, (Eli) is a first team all-state guy," Smith said. "He is a fantastic hitter and he has done it his whole career. We love him. It is a blessing to have that kid here. We just wanted to get runners on base. That was the main key, get some runs."

Collin Howell picked up the win going 5 1/3 innings, allowing no earned runs and striking out five Highlanders.

"Collin is a buffalo. He continues to work hard," Smith said. "A great arm talent and a good kid. A special freshman. He has really improved as the year has gone along. We just have to keep playing."

Now the scenario is simple. A Greater Beckley win in game two secures a first-ever State Baseball Tournament berth. However, Webster County is also looking for its first-ever trip to Charleston, but the Highlanders still need two wins to do so.

"In 51 years (of Webster County school history), this team ties four other teams that have reached a regional ball game. We have never moved on to the state tournament," Skidmore said. "All we can do is tie up our shoes and come out tomorrow. Greater Beckley had a great game. They had a great game plan. They stuck with it and it worked out for them. I am just hoping that our kids rally, show up and its a better day for us tomorrow."