BASEBALL: Gatewood grinds back to beat Trinity in region debut

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The Trinity Crusaders opened their region schedule on Tuesday against three-time defending state champion Gatewood, the team that has eliminated them from the playoffs the last two seasons.

Early on, it looked like Trinity may finally get the best of the Gators, but the visitors scored eight times in the final three innings to hand the Crusaders their second loss of the season 11-7.

END OF THE INNING IN SIGHT: Trinity third baseman Andrew Helton, with the shades lowered to counter the low sun, prepares to chuck one to first for a second out of Tuesday’s third inning. The ground ball put a runner on third, but also put the Crusaders an out from ending it, which came to pass with a fly ball against the next batter to keep Gatewood scoreless in the frame/CLAY REYNOLDS

Jayden Moss, who blasted four of his nine homers last season against Trinity, picked up right where he left off with a solo bomb in the top of the first to give Gatewood an early lead.

Moss was not nearly as effective on the mound as Trinity erupted for five runs off of him in the home half of the frame. Jakob Sahli walked to lead off the inning and Asher Evans followed with a single. After Sahli scored on a fielder choice, Carter Lee would single to give Trinity the lead, 2-1.

A single by Tayt Evans would advance the runners to set up back-to-back RBI hits from Kolbi Grooms and Blake Sims, making the score 4-1. Later in the inning, Sahli would walk yet again to bring the score to 5-1.

That would hold until the fourth when Wesley Lavigne drilled a two-run homer for the Gators to make the score 5-3.

GATORS GOING YARD: After the solo shot of Jayden Moss got Gatewood on the board in the first, Wesley Lavigne took his turn hitting one to U.S. 441 in the fourth to cut Trinity’s early lead of four in half/CLAY REYNOLDS

Trinity got both of those runs back in the home half of the fourth. A bases-loaded walk by Tayt Evans would plate the sixth run and an error would make the score 7-3.

Moss struck again for Gateood in the fifth with a two-run double to make it 7-5. Lawson Moore drove him home with another hit to make it 7-6. The Gators would tie the score on a double steal attempt where the runner stayed in a run down long enough to knot the score at 7-7.

It remained tied until the seventh, when Gatewood got a single and a walk to lead off the inning. Following an out, the Gators got another hit, but a perfect relay nailed Moss at the plate for the second out of the inning and keep the game tied.

Unfortunately for Trinity, the next four batters would get hits to drive home four more runs to make the score 11-7, and that would be the final.