KFDM COOP Posted May 21, 2009 Report Posted May 21, 2009 Bobcats, Cards eager for Battle on the Bayou Gabriel Pruett The Orange Leader It is no secret the record Orangefield has had against Bridge City the last three seasons. The streak even goes beyond three years. Jeff Bennett has been head baseball coach of the Bobcats the past three seasons and is yet to get into the winning side of things when facing the Cardinals but two wins this weekend and the six losses will seem like a distant memory. The Bobcats (22-9) and Cardinals (23-4-1) will meet at 5 p.m. today at Vidor High School for Game 1 of the Class 3A Region III Regional Quarterfinals. Game 2 will be played shortly after Game 1 with Game 3, if necessary, at 7 p.m. Saturday. Orangefield had bye in the area round after sweeping Liberty in the bi-district round. Bridge City knocked off Cameron Yoe in the area round after a by in the bi-district round since it was champions of District 21-3A. “We knew going into the season there was a possibility we would be in this situation,†Bennett said. “When we found out where we fell in the bracket, we knew we would be facing the Cardinals in the third round. It is a challenge our kids look forward to.†Bridge City has certainly had to work to defeat Orangefield twice this season. The first time the two rivals met Bridge City left Orangefield with a 4-2 victory. The Cardinals then knocked off the Bobcats 9-1 in Bridge City. “We are a completely different team at this point in the year,†Bridge City coach Chad Landry said. “We have been playing with a lot more confidence and we are hitting the ball much better than the first two games. Hitting is contagious. It usually only takes one guy to get the ball rolling.†Landry said the Cardinals players have been talking about his series since they stepped on the bus Monday after defeating Cameron Yoe, 13-3, in Houston. “The guys are excited and ready to go,†Landry said. “There is always a little bit of nervousness going into such a big game but once the game gets here the nerves turn to excitement. I understand everyone in town is going so it is going to be a big one.†Bennett even admitted the Cardinals are playing at a different level as of late before the words came out of Landry’s mouth. “We knew once he (Landry) got the Bridge City job the Cardinals would be a formidable opponent,†Bennett said. “Chad does such a great job utilizing the talents his players have. Their confidence level is totally different right now. I told our players usually good teams have one or two letdowns a year. Bridge City has not had a letdown yet.†Bennett will be looking for the Bobcats to continue to put the ball in play like they have all season. Orangefield is batting .349 as a team with 240 runs and 15 homers. Jacob Felts is leading the way with a .489 batting average and 37 RBI. Jace Statum is hitting .463 while Zach Peevey is hitting .368. “Our kids have to have the mindset that we are going to go into these games and do things right,†Bennett added. “We have to play good defense, not strike out and put the ball in play. We have to make sure we make them beat us and not beat ourselves. Our kids cannot get wrapped up in the fact they are highly ranked. We need to worry about the Orangefield Bobcats.†Landry knows it will be a struggle facing a team his squad has a 2-0 record against this year. “It is difficult to go 4-0 against any team in a year, especially a ranked team,†Landry said. “That is going to be tough to do. At first we were worried about playing two series in one week but now that it is here, we are thrilled we didn’t have to wait so long.†Orangefield’s offense will be looking to score off a Bridge City pitching staff which boasts a 2.39 team ERA with 223 strike outs to just 74 walks. On top of the rotation is Matt Hicks with a 1.39 ERA with 117 strike outs to just 15 walks. Caleb Kellogg has a 3.50 ERA while Daniel Wallace is at 2.73 and Forrest Zoch is pitching at a 3.36 clip. The winner of this series will face Spring Hill or Robinson in next week’s regional semifinals.
Recommended Posts