LEBANON, Tenn. -- John Tipton threw a four-hit shutout and he and his Baylor teammates picked on four Christian Brothers pitchers for 15 hits as the Red Raiders advanced to the winners-bracket final with a 10-0 victory.
Baylor will play Battle Ground Academy at 1:30 EDT this afternoon.
"I don't know that I'd call it an upset," Tipton said of the win over the defending state champs. "It's baseball. You just go out and play."
Baylor turned two double plays, one in the first inning and one in the sixth, that got Tipton out of potential jams.
The biggest piece of defensive work, though, might have come from right fielder Brandon Robertson. Christian Brothers' Ben Smith roped a shot into right-center and Robertson hustled over and drilled a strike to shortstop Will Crimmins to nail Smith by five feet.
"We had good defense a lot of places," said Baylor coach Gene Etter, whose team also opened the 2011 tournament with the Purple Wave but left with a loss.
The Red Raiders broke a scoreless tie in the top of the third, batting around and scoring six runs. Six of their nine starters getting at least two hits, led by left fielder Colton Jumper, who had four hits including a double, scored a run and knocked in one.
"He's been working hard all year and he's come through with some big hits," Tipton said.
Jumper's first at-bat, a solid single to left field, was misplayed into a double that gave Baylor a jumpstart.
Taylor Maxey followed with a sacrifice bunt and then reached on a throwing error by the pitcher. Buddy Lindsey walked before Tipton's single plated the first run. Robertson singled to deep short and Hunter Holland slapped a shot through the second baseman's legs that scored two. Spencer Craig added another RBI single and Will Crimmins then singled before Jumper, with his second hit of the inning, chased in the sixth run.
The Red Raiders pretty much put it away in the top of the seventh, scoring four runs on singles by Crimmins and Jackson Cooper, a double by Jumper and an RBI groundout by Lindsey.
Contact Ward Gossett at wgossett@timesfreepress.com or 423-886-4765.
Ward Gossett is an assistant sports editor and writer for the Times Free Press. Ward has a long history in Chattanooga journalism. He actually wrote a bylined story for the Chattanooga News-Free Press as a third-grader. He Began working part-time there in 1968 and was hired full time in 1970. Ward now covers high school athletics, primarily football, wrestling and baseball and University of Tennessee at Chattanooga wrestling. Over a 40-year career, he has covered ...
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