The Blair Junior Legion baseball team eliminated the Arlington Eagles from Class B State Tournament contention Monday in Waverly, 4-1.
The Bears scored three first-inning runs and held Post 71 off from there, improving to 2-1 at state and to 24-6 overall. Arlington, meanwhile, bowed out of the Junior Legion tourney after a 1-2 showing.
Post 154 next plays Tuesday in another elimination game. First pitch is tentatively scheduled for 1 p.m.
The Bears' Joe Rodriguez punched across his team's first run Monday with a single before Lee Chavez-Lara — the winning pitcher — pushed across two more with his own.
Arlington's Blaine Vogt responded with an RBI single during the top of the second inning, but it was all the Eagles could muster for the game. Eli Morgan plated one Blair run in the sixth frame and the Bears went on to win by three. Pitcher Hunter Travis stepped in for Chavez-Lara once the starter hit his pitch count, retiring the final batter when Kaden Sears fielded a groundball and stepped on third base for a force out.
“We just have a great group of guys,” Blair coach Howie Brewer said. “I've thoroughly loved coaching them all season long.”
For the full story on this game and additional photos, check out Friday's edition of the Washington County Enterprise or the Arlington Citizen. Coverage will be posted online at enterprisepub.com and arlingtoncitizen.com that same day.
