Coach McGownd Hopes Tough Early Schedule Will Pay Dividends in May
April 1, 2021
Johnsie Martin
Coach Derwin McGownd didn’t seem phased as he looked at the Baseball Bear’s 2-4 record, heading into the third week of the season. McGownd said, “It’s going to help us in the long run to front-load the schedule with tough opponents, especially when we get into the conference schedule and even into districts.”
The Bear’s first game of the season on March 19 was a win against the Wheaton Bulldogs. Wheaton is a talented team with a lot of seniors. The Bears took the lead early and never looked back. Cameron Robertson led the Bears on the mound and at the plate, going 2-2 with three RBI’s. Robertson also picked up the win on the mound, striking out eight. He also combined with relief pitcher Cannon Keithley for a no-hitter. Logan Thompson and Chase Robertson also supported the effort with two hits and two RBI’s.
The week of March 22, the Bears competed in the Cassville Tournament. Wednesday, they played Gravette, Arkansas and Cassville. In the Gravette matchup, Galena only managed one hit against Lion’s pitcher, Hunter Betz. Betz had five strikeouts in five innings pitched. Chase Robertson had the lone hit for the Bears. Cassville scored two runs in the first inning off of starter Grant Harness, and that is all they would need to be victorious. Grant Harness settled in after that, allowing only three runs on two hits, striking out five. Galena scored their lone run in the top of the 5th on a line drive to right by Sophomore, Nathan Dinger, scoring Cooper Sartin.
Friday, the Bears picked up their first win of the tournament against Flippin, Arkansas. Galena jumped on top early with four runs in the bottom of the first. The Bears were led in hitting by junior, Logan Busbey with two hits. Senior Hunter Chase pitched in with a hit and two RBI’s. Busbey also led the Bears on the mound, going 4 2/3 innings, striking out nine. Galena’s final game of the tournament was against Class 4 power, the Senaca Indians. The game was close early, until a controversial call in the third inning led to two additional runs. The Bears couldn’t bounce back, and ended up losing 9-0.
Monday, March 29, Galena traveled to Norwood to take on the Pirates. Grant Harness was back on the mound and struggled with his command, walking six in 2 1/3 innings. Logan Thompson was the leading hitter in the contest with two hits and one RBI. The Bears lost 10-2.
Galena will be back in action Tuesday, March 30 at Blue Eye, Wednesday, March 31 at home against Hurley, and will finish the week Friday with a home doubleheader against Jasper and Dora. Coach McGownd said, “We are getting into the meat of our schedule with SWCL Conference games. We’ll have to be focused and ready for the likes of Blue Eye, Crane, Purdy, and Billings.”
Johnsie Martin
Coach Derwin McGownd didn’t seem phased as he looked at the Baseball Bear’s 2-4 record, heading into the third week of the season. McGownd said, “It’s going to help us in the long run to front-load the schedule with tough opponents, especially when we get into the conference schedule and even into districts.”
The Bear’s first game of the season on March 19 was a win against the Wheaton Bulldogs. Wheaton is a talented team with a lot of seniors. The Bears took the lead early and never looked back. Cameron Robertson led the Bears on the mound and at the plate, going 2-2 with three RBI’s. Robertson also picked up the win on the mound, striking out eight. He also combined with relief pitcher Cannon Keithley for a no-hitter. Logan Thompson and Chase Robertson also supported the effort with two hits and two RBI’s.
The week of March 22, the Bears competed in the Cassville Tournament. Wednesday, they played Gravette, Arkansas and Cassville. In the Gravette matchup, Galena only managed one hit against Lion’s pitcher, Hunter Betz. Betz had five strikeouts in five innings pitched. Chase Robertson had the lone hit for the Bears. Cassville scored two runs in the first inning off of starter Grant Harness, and that is all they would need to be victorious. Grant Harness settled in after that, allowing only three runs on two hits, striking out five. Galena scored their lone run in the top of the 5th on a line drive to right by Sophomore, Nathan Dinger, scoring Cooper Sartin.
Friday, the Bears picked up their first win of the tournament against Flippin, Arkansas. Galena jumped on top early with four runs in the bottom of the first. The Bears were led in hitting by junior, Logan Busbey with two hits. Senior Hunter Chase pitched in with a hit and two RBI’s. Busbey also led the Bears on the mound, going 4 2/3 innings, striking out nine. Galena’s final game of the tournament was against Class 4 power, the Senaca Indians. The game was close early, until a controversial call in the third inning led to two additional runs. The Bears couldn’t bounce back, and ended up losing 9-0.
Monday, March 29, Galena traveled to Norwood to take on the Pirates. Grant Harness was back on the mound and struggled with his command, walking six in 2 1/3 innings. Logan Thompson was the leading hitter in the contest with two hits and one RBI. The Bears lost 10-2.
Galena will be back in action Tuesday, March 30 at Blue Eye, Wednesday, March 31 at home against Hurley, and will finish the week Friday with a home doubleheader against Jasper and Dora. Coach McGownd said, “We are getting into the meat of our schedule with SWCL Conference games. We’ll have to be focused and ready for the likes of Blue Eye, Crane, Purdy, and Billings.”