Steers’ late rally falls short

Hitting was an issue again Tuesday night for the Steers against Iowa Park. After falling behind three runs during the bottom of the first inning, the Steers were held to one hit until the fifth inning. A late-inning rally fell short and the Steers fell to the Hawks, 5-2, at the Graham High School baseball field.

The game started with playoff implications for the Steers. A Steers loss paired with a Burkburnett win would have placed the Steers in a tie for third place with the Bulldogs. The Bulldogs were defeated by Vernon 12-2, so the outcome ultimately did not impact the district standings.

Ryan Grimsley took the mound for the Steers and the team struggled during the game’s opening inning. Janson Bernard flew out to open the game. However, Brynyn Britt reached first base on an error at third base. Britt advanced to third on a single by Jaydon Southard. The Hawks earned their first run of the game on a double steal with Britt scoring at home and Southard successfully stealing second base with Ty Cunningham at bat. The Hawks had runners on first and third following Cunningham’s single. A courtesy runner entered for Southard and scored on an RBI single by CJ Miser. The Hawks scored their third run of the inning following a two-out error at second base. Grimsley threw his first strikeout of the game to get out of the inning.

For the full story, see the Saturday, April 30 edition of The Graham Leader.