It’s never easy when you are trying to make an appearance in the KHSAA State Tournament, but Taylor County in a matter of speaking may have proved who really was the best team in a stacked 5th Region Tournament last Wednesday. The Cardinals turned a close game into a runaway and won the 5th Region baseball tournament at North Hardin High school for the second time since 2019.
The 19-5 score over a very determined Green County team may seem like a blowout, but the Cardinals have been very predictable in their trip to Radcliff this week: Feel the team out, strike quickly and just when the opponent starts to climb back into the game, they bury them.
Don’t believe me. Check out the Washington County game in Round One as the Commanders struck first with a homerun and an RBI double to take a 2-0 lead in the top of the third. Just like that, Taylor County responded taking advantage of an error and an RBI single by Cole McLean to take a 3-2 lead. After Washington County tied the score then retook the lead on another home run this time by Dax Humes (6-4), the Cardinals retook the lead with six runs in the sixth to go ahead 10-6. Grayson Kearney got the win as he was the fourth of four Cards hurlers.
Game Two in the Final Four looked to be a pitching duo between two of the best teams in the Regionals. It turned out to be a blowout. Surprisingly, Cole McLean looked like Nolan Ryan on the mound with a 15-strikeouts and allowing just one hit as the defense was stifling in an 8-1 win over LaRue County. After taking a 3-0 lead after three innings, In fact, the Hawks, the reigning two-time region champs didn’t get a hit until Brady Skaggs hit a leadoff double in the top of the 4th and eventually scored on a passed ball, but other than two walks in the seventh, that was pretty much it as McLean struckout the side in the 2nd, 3rd and the 7th an had at least one strikeout in each inning. Taylor County blew out the Hawks in the sixth with five runs on four hits. The seven-run win set up a showdown for the Region Trophy against the Dragons, who had pulled some rabbits out of the hat to knockoff Central Hardin and Nelson County in rounds one and two.
Green County got things going with a run in the first, but just like that, the Cardinals had the Dragons right where they wanted them as they exploded for five runs in the top of the second thanks to three walks and a hit-batsman to first tie the game then a single, a fielders choice and another single by Hayes changed the complexity of the game. Ironically, Green County didn’t give in and fought back with two runs to close in at 5-3 after four, but six runs in the fifth and eight runs in the sixth finally finished the story as the Cardinals tallied 19-runs on 10-hits and an astounding 15-walks. Green County used five different hurlers and in the end everyone allowed at least two-runs each. Gabe Cole was one of three Taylor County pitchers and he got the win, while Drew Squires took the loss.
It was an awesome display of power and pitching during the three day event and will set up quite an event when th Cardinals make their first trip to Kentucky Proud Park (in 2019, the Cardinals played the first round of state at Eastern High School losing to PRP 9-8 in eight innings).
For a team which has averaged over 28-wins since 2021, this had to be sweet redemption for the last several seasons of early eliminations in the Regionals and the chase and disappointments (the past several seasons Elizabethtown, Bethlehem and Washington County and LaRue County were their last game in the Regionals) has really molded them into a veteran squad. One that should be ready when they take on Sayre Thursday afternoon at 5:00 for hopefully the first of what may be a long stay during the next two weeks in Lexington.