Big inning by Haynes trips Tigers up in district clash

On Tuesday evening, Donaldsonville was just six outs away from possibly winning their second district game of the season, but a Haynes Academy flurry in the top of the sixth turned a tied ball game into a deep hole the Tigers could never escape.

Haynes scored five in the inning, allowing them to eventually pull away with a 10-6 victory.

"We were in the ball game. Tim (Campbell) was pitching well, and the defense was playing well," Donaldsonville head coach Garrett Maum said. "But then, we have a guy misplay one fly ball, and the bases get loaded. When that happens, they're going to score. Take that one fly ball away, then we get two outs with runners on probably second and third. Then it's a whole different ball game."

From the mound, Campbell settled in later for the Tigers, but in the first two innings, he struggled with his command. This allowed Haynes to jump out to an early lead.

Two hits and a walk gave way to one run in the first.

In the second, two hits, a walk and a fielding error allowed Haynes to score two more to extend the lead to 3-0.

After stranding three base-runners in the first inning, Donaldsonville finally generated some offense in the bottom of the second.

Josh Collier drew a leadoff walk. He eventually scored after a single by Campbell was mishandled by the outfielder.

Campbell later came home following a Haynes throwing error to cut the deficit to 3-2.

Donaldsonville scored another run in the fourth to tie the game.

However, Haynes had a response.

In the fifth, a routine fly ball into left was misjudged by the fielder, allowing it to go over his head for a double. That runner was eventually sent home with an RBI single.

Though, the Tigers were able to tie the game at the bottom of the inning.

Tre'von Mitchell led off with a single, and he was sent home with a single by Tevon Dunn.

But with the game tied at 4-4 in the top of the fifth, the bottom dropped out for Donaldsonville.

Two singles and a fielding error loaded the bases for Haynes.

One runner scored on a passed ball, and three more came home following a base-clearing triple.

The final runner alertly came home to score on a Tiger throw to first base.

The five-run flurry gave Haynes a comfortable 9-4 advantage. They added an insurance run in the seventh.

Down to their final three outs, Mitchell came up with a sac grounder, and Tyree Parker scored when Haynes attempted to gun down a Donaldsonville runner at second.

The runs cut the deficit to 10-6, but that's as close as the Tigers would get.

In the loss, Donaldsonville was held to just five hits. They stranded eight base-runners throughout the course of the game.

"We know our limitations on offense. So, any time we get runners in scoring position, it's vital that we score," Maum said. "I was trying to safety squeeze. I was trying to figure out some way to somehow get a ball on the ground, because we struggle at the plate. Once we get past the five-hole, it gets tough."

Campbell was the only Tiger to finish the day with multiple hits. He went 2-4.

Dunn had one of Donaldsonville's RBIs as he went 1-2 with a walk. Mitchell had the other as he finished 1-4.

The loss dropped the Tigers to 1-6 in district play. They finish out the league schedule next week with back-to-back games against De La Salle.