BASEBALL: Big game for Bryant in return to lineup as West Laurens smokes Howard 

Parker Bryant isn’t yet all the way back, as he awaits clearance to resume pitching and catching, but West Laurens was more than thrilled for his partial return from a 19-day stint on the injured list Tuesday night as his explosive bat rejoined its lineup in the role of designated hitter. 

The Georgia State signee drove in six runs on three extra base hits to lead a 16-1 run-rule rampage over Howard, as the Raiders opened their final series before a region championship-deciding showdown with No. 1 ranked back-to-back state champ Harlem next week. 

The Huskies, much like the Raiders’ five region opponents before them, were hardly a match in the four-inning game, though they did put bats on the ball and found some gaps for seven base hits, two each by Victor Pinkney and Jamal Ivery, and at least one in every frame. 

But just one man – Joseph Johnson in the third as Pinkney’s steal of second created a defensive diversion – was allowed to score by starting pitcher Kolby Clark, who struck out seven and stayed free of walks in his third-consecutive quality outing. 

West Laurens erased an earlier potential run in the first inning as Duggan Malone threw out Pinkney halfway up the third base line on his attempt to score following the single of Darrius Brown to close out the top half of the first inning. 

Four of Howard’s five other baserunners were stranded despite some consistent action for the visitors in the three remaining innings. 

The Raiders took a minute to get going at the plate, and were set down without a run in the first inning thanks to a strikeout by first-time starting pitcher Cedric Williams and Brown’s timely recovery of a wild pitch to toss back for Williams’ tag of Nathan Hester at the plate to take it to the second with no score.

But things began clicking in a hurry with a single to lead off the second by Cohen Cardwell, and following were a five more hits, plus three Howard walks and a handful of pitches that got away, to chase home a total of 10 runs. 

Relief pitcher Eduardo Leiva was summoned from the Huskies’ bullpen to stop the bleeding, and did on a quick grounder and pop fly for the two final outs of inning 2. But West Laurens got back to work with some more damage on two hits and a pair of walks to score four more in the third. 

Hester, Clark, Cardwell and J.J. Giles had the other RBIs in the two-inning mix besides those of Bryant, who tripled on a rope to right and doubled to the left center gap in a pair of at-bats to bring in four. 

He’d go back to the left field power alley on a deep fly, just missing a home run off the outfield signage, on another double to walk off with the Raiders’ final two after a Howard walk and hit batter in the fourth.

Cardwell, finishing 2-for-3, was the only other West Laurens batter with multiple hits. Malone, Giles and Hester had the other three of the Raiders’ eight.

West Laurens goes to Macon to complete the series Friday, before hosting the first of its pair with Harlem Tuesday, April 1.