Murphy – Another week, and two more Smoky Mountain Conference wins for Murphy baseball.
The Bulldogs beat Andrews 9-1 on April 19 at Konehete Park, then beat the Wildcats 12-1 in Andrews on April 22. In between, Murphy dropped a non-conference game to Union County, Ga., on April 20, falling to the Panthers 7-2.
The team only practiced once over spring break, and only about half the team attended. So as the innings went by in the first game against Andrews (0-9, 0-8), head coach Adam Clonts said the Bulldogs got more comfortable.
“We struggled early, we really did,” Clonts said. “The velocity of the pitcher, he threw strikes, but it wasn’t the velocity we’ve been seeing. Our bats weren’t disciplined so we popped the ball up a lot, but we refocused and started scoring runs later in the game.”
Murphy (9-5, 7-1) initially struggled against Andrews pitcher Braxton Ricketts, jumping out to a 2-0 lead before finally putting it all together in a five-run fifth inning. Will Carringer, Braden Rumfelt and Adam Sutton had two hits each, and Murphy was dominant on the mound with 19 strikeouts.
The Bulldogs also welcomed back Kellen Rumfelt against Andrews, meaning Murphy will be fully healthy heading into the final two weeks of the regular season.
The Bulldogs would struggle the next day against Union County (9-17) in Blairsville, Ga. Murphy led 2-1 going into the bottom of the fourth inning, but couldn’t finish the job. The Panthers tied the game in the bottom of the inning, scored four in the fifth to take a 6-2 lead, then added an insurance run in the sixth.
Two days later, Murphy headed to Andrews and came away with a 12-1 win. The Bulldogs scored four runs in the top of the first and never looked back in a five-inning mercy rule win.
A total of 12 Murphy players had at-bats and nine got hits, with Payton McCracken and Will Carringer leading the way with two each. The pitching was strong, with Isaac Cole striking out six and giving up one run in four innings before Tommy Crapse made his varsity pitching debut in the bottom of the fifth and closed out the game.
Coming down the final stretch of the regular season, Murphy remains in a three team battle for the conference championship. Swain County is in first place at 8-1, but the Bulldogs are right behind at 7-1, with Hayesville in third at 6-1.
Murphy split with the Maroon Devils, and has games against the Yellow Jackets on Tuesday, May 3, and Thursday, May 5, to close out the regular season. Swain County beat Hayesville 4-0 on April 7 and plays them again Friday. As much as the Bulldogs know what’s at stake, they also know this week is just as important.
“We’d like to win out,” Clonts said. “We’d like for Swain to lose another one, and we’d like to win out. This team is focused but we don’t want to overlook anyone.”
Murphy traveled to Hiwassee Dam on Tuesday, which took place after this week’s edition of the Cherokee Scout went to press, then hosts the Eagles on Friday. The Bulldogs also host Copper Basin, Tenn., in a non-conference game at 5 p.m. Thursday.