MANCHESTER, Tenn. — Soddy-Daisy’s Trojans scarfed Chik-Fil-A sandwiches for their pregame meal and in retrospect probably wish they’d sprinkled them with a handful of Wheaties or washed them down with a high-octane energy drink.
At least a half-dozen times they muscled balls high and deep but they were shots that came up only a foot or two shy and plopped into Coffee County gloves against the fence.
While their outfielders tracked down nine fly balls, the Red Raiders got just enough hits to accompany an error-free performance and nail down a 4-3 win over favored Soddy-Daisy.
“Obviously that’s way too many (fly ball outs), but I’d say six of those were pretty well hit. Their outfielders played deep, chased them down and made the plays,” said Soddy-Daisy coach Jared Hensley, who saw his Trojans’ latest win streak severed at eight. “That was the difference. They made the plays and we did not.”
The Trojans, victimized time and again by off-speed pitches, gave up 11 of their at-bats on balls caught in the air.