The best two districts in Fourth Region baseball are usually the 13th and 14th. That’s especially true this year. And the two representatives of those two districts have drawn each other in the opening round of the regional tournament at WKU Memorial Day for the second straight year.
The winningest teams in the region, Logan County (28-7) and Bowling Green (28-10), will face off at an estimated 8:15 Monday night. They are each 18-3 against regional opponents and have split with each other this year.
Meanwhile 13th District champion Franklin-Simpson (20-16) will face the third winningest team in the region, South Warren (25-12), in the first game of the day at 10 a.m. The Wildcats are 12-7 against regional foes and the Spartans are 15-8 against the home folks.
When the Cougars and the Purples played during the regular season, BGH won 6-2 in the third game of the season on March 21. Then on April 8, Coach Ethan Meguiar’s Cougars won 3-0 with Dylan Penick pitching a 3-hit, 2-walk, 9-strikeout jewel.
Chandler Silvey had two hits and an RBI in that game. Zack Yates and Koby Wall each singled for RBIs. Braxton Meguiar, who got Logan’s other hit, scored, as did Jacob Smock and Third Bell.
The LCHS-BGH winner will go against the Russell County (25-8) vs. Glasgow (16-16) survivor Tuesday. Logan and Bowling Green have a combined record of 56-17. Russell and Glasgow have a 41-24 mark. Franklin and South Warren are 46-35 and are paired with Allen County-Scottsville (13-16) and Cumberland County (13-21). That duo has a combined record of 26-37.
The Cougars and Purples also met in last year’s regional opener. Logan had a better record at 24-8, but BGH not only shocked them with a 9-0 rout but also won the region. That proved to be the closest game the Purples would play while outscoring their three regional opponents 35-2. They also won a game at state.
Franklin and South Warren also met in last year’s regional opener. The Wildcats won that game 3-0 but lost in the semifinals.
Several of the Logan and Franklin players were on the varsity when the two teams met in the regional finals. The Wildcats won that game behind the pitching of Zack Sliger and the hitting of Jacob Curtis. Penick pitched well for most of that regional championship game.