MURFREESBORO — Friendship scored six runs in the third and nine in the fourth, including four homeruns, to beat Nashville Christian for the second night in a row in the Class A baseball tournament.
The Commanders had 14 hits and finished the game on a single from Mitchell Miller and a run from Matt Goodner in the bottom of the fifth to take the 16-6 victory.
“We just all came out of our hitting slump,” Miller said. “I don’t know how to explain it, we just put it together. We knew it was win or go home.”
Friendship defeated Nashville Christian Tuesday night 2-1 and lost 13-0 early Wednesday to Decatur Count- Riverside, which the Commanders (30-6-1) will face today at 3 p.m.
“I’ve seen (the hitting), I know it’s there,” Friendship Coach John McNeal said. “But it had me worried. I do feel better now going into tomorrow.”
The four home runs came from Goodner, Miller, John Markham and Hardie Sorrells.
Every run in the game came after an hour-and-a-half rain and lightning delay that suspended play after the end of the first and forced Nashville Christian starting pitcher Cody Hartley from the game.
“Rain delay or not Hartley probably wouldn’t have been able to go as long as he wanted to,” Eagles’ coach Ben Williams said. “His arm has been sore a lot. But that doesn’t take anything away from (Friendship).”
Nashville Christian ends the season with a 25-10 record after its first trip to the state tournament.
“I told my seniors, ‘don’t be ashamed,’ this is the farthest our team has ever been,” Williams said. “They set the bar for what it’s going to be like from here on out.”
