Less than a week after winning three games in the Bo Bowman Tournament, Lawton High baseball is once again searching for answers.
The Wolverines suffered a doubleheader sweep at the hands of Choctaw, losing 11-1 and 13-3 in five innings each at Paul Wilson Park on Tuesday night. LHS (4-13) has now lost 11 games by 10 or more runs.
Having already garnered a 2-0 lead in the first inning of Game 1, the Yellowjackets put it of reach in the second.
Hudson Woods triggered the rout with an inside-the-park grand slam with a shot down the right-field line to extend the score to 7-0. A throwing error in the bottom half allowed LHS to record a run on an RBI groundout from Denton Lee, but that was about all the Wolverines could manage.
After striking out Cooper Harris to open the third, LHS pitcher Kyler Jenderseck walked three-straight batters, and though Bryson Glass came in to relieve the junior, it made little difference.
With the bases loaded, Glass walked Cade Sanford on his first play from the mound, giving the Yellowjackets a free run. Woods followed that up with a 2-RBI single to center field to score Dalton Smith and William Emerson.
Choctaw’s final run came in the fourth when Chaz Atwood drove in Ethan Crews with a single to left field.
Although the Yellowjackets (9-6) scored more in Game 2, they didn’t pull away until much later.
Choctaw gained a 3-0 advantage through the first three innings on four hits, but the Wolverines seemed determined to avoid another run-rule decision.
Yellowjacket pitcher Lucas Bradley, who three a no-hitter during that period, became fatigued, and LHS took advantage, tying the game with three runs of its own.
Bradley walked three of five batters to open the fourth, and Jenderseck made him pay for it with the Wolverines’ first run. Quintrell Scott hit a single on the next play, scoring Marquis Allen and Lee to knot the game at 3.
The Yellowjackets had a response, though, and what a response it was.
Choctaw tallied five hits in the bottom half, scoring five runs in the process to regain the lead at 8-3.
Hunter Shores began the spurt with a single to left field, and Tyler Collier brought him home shorty after with a single of his own the same area. Crews then nailed a 2-RBI single to left field to score Collier and Angel Ackerman.
Keeping with the trend of left-field hits, Harris knocked a double in that direction, and though he was caught stealing third, Shores and Crews crossed home Shores and Crews crossed home plate.
The Yellowjackets duplicated that performance in the fifth, tallying five more runs to end the contest early. However, only two of those scores came as a result of hits.
Collier reached first on a throwing error, allowing him to advance to second. Woods hit a single to right field before stealing second and third on a pair of LHS errors, scoring Collier.
Another Wolverines error scored Woods on the next play.
The nightmarish evening only continued for LHS, as two passed balls, a walk and a wild pitch tacked on another run for the cruising Yellowjackets. Caden Young finally ended the onslaught with a double to right field, driving in Harris and Smith to cap off the 10-run run.
In all, Choctaw connected for 12 hits, eight of which came in the final two innings.
The Wolverines will try to get back in the win column starting on Thursday in the Marlow Tournament.