Bradley Central and East Hamilton stepped outside the box Sunday with a baseball pitching duel on the end of a grueling invitational weekend when aces are reserved for district games.
East Hamilton pulled it out, scoring its runs in the top of the seventh inning and holding on for a 3-2 victory over the Bears to win Hixson’s Wildcat Classic.
“It’s rare for a Sunday afternoon, but this was one of the best-pitched games I’ve seen in a while,” winning coach Steve Garland said.
Through six innings, the teams combined for six hits.
“It was a pretty tight game when you probably go in expecting a lot of offense,” Bradley coach Travis Adams said. “We weren’t as tight at times as I’d like. They hit the ball late in the game and we missed a cutoff man and had a big play at third that didn’t go our way.”