Canes' pitchers blank Ohio team for ninth straight win

The Purple Hurricanes’ pitching trio of Curtis Wilkes, Cohen Wilbanks, and Anthony Seigler combined for a three-hit shutout Tuesday night as Cartersville defeated Troy (OH) at Richard Bell Field, 2-0.

Each of the Canes’ hurlers yielded one hit in the contest. Wilkes started and walked two with three strikeouts in the first three innings. Wilbanks also went three frames with one walk and fanned three. Seigler closed out the final inning with one strikeout.

Cartersville’s offense loaded the bases four times in the game and left the bases jammed three different times, but the pitching kept the visiting Trojans off the scoreboard.

Senior Josh Mayo drove home the Canes’ first run in the second inning with a one-out RBI single, but Troy pitcher Derek McDonagh was able to work out of the jam with only one run scoring. Garrett Shelton had a one-out hit in the inning and scored the Cartersville run. John Reed Evans also had a base hit in the frame.

After the Hurricanes loaded the bases in the fourth on two walks and a hit batsman, the offense sputtered again and failed to push a run across.

In the fifth inning with the bases loaded, LaDarius Winburn drove in the game’s only other run with a sacrifice fly that scored Josh Davis. Davis had singled to start the inning and advanced to third following a base hit by Jake Gooch and Devin Warner’s hit by a pitch.

Up 2-0, Cartersville loaded the bases again in the bottom of the sixth on three walks yet failed to score. In all, the Canes left 11 runners on base in their six innings of offense.

McDonagh suffered the pitching loss for Troy despite working out of several jams. He went five innings, allowed two earned runs on five hits and a walk, and fanned six.

It was only the third game of the year and the first loss for the visiting team from Ohio. Troy slipped to a 2-1 record.

Cartersville (19-5, 7-0 Region 5-AAAA) won its ninth straight game and will play out of region again Thursday evening in Marietta at Lassiter.