Late FTG rally stuns Jackets

With a spot in the state semifinals within their grasp, the Kingfisher Yellowjackets painfully watched it slip away.

Fort Gibson scored three runs in the bottom of the seventh inning Thursday to pull off a 3-2 come-from-behind victory over KHS in the Class 4A state baseball quarterfinals in Shawnee.

Senior starting pitcher Brady Friesen handcuffed the Tigers for six innings and was primed to close out the game in its final frame.

But the inning started on a sour note when Brody Rainbolt was able to reach on a throwing error by KHS third baseman T.J. Parker.

The rally had begun.

The Tigers followed with consecutive singles to load the bases before Jaxon Blunt tied the game with a two-run single.

Coach Stan Blundell called on Ian Daugherty to try to salvage the game with nobody out and runners on second and third.

But Daugherty’s first offering - a breaking ball - found the dirt and Jaiden Graves scored the winning run on the wild pitch.

Entering the seventh, Fort Gibson had managed only three hits off of Friesen.

He had struck out seven batters and walked or hit only three.

Friesen was also the beneficiary of solid defense by KHS.

The bottom of the first ended when the Tigers intentionally got in a rundown between first and second in an attempt the sneak home Wyatt Pierce from third. He was thrown out to end the frame.

They tried it again in the third, this time when Pierce was at first.

However, Tate Taylor ran him down to tag him out then threw out Hunter Branch at home for a double play.

The sixth inning ended when Friesen struck out Cody Walkingstick and Daugherty threw out courtesy runner Zahayfa Hummingbird as he attempted to steal second.

All of those plays helped keep the Tigers scoreless through six innings, but the Jackets also had missed early opportunities on offense.

Tate Taylor led off the game with a single, eventually reached third and appeared primed to score when Daugherty scorched a shot to third base.

But Blunt was able to snag it just before it hit the dirt, then doubled up Taylor at the base.

Kingfisher broke through in the third when Taylor drew a one-out walk and got to third on Cade Stephenson’s double to the left-center wall.

The Tigers intentionally walked Daugherty - the first of two on the night - to load the bases.

Taylor scored on a wild pitch, but that’s all KHS mustered out of the scenario.

It was Taylor striking again in the fifth when he belted a double.

Daugherty was walked intentionally and Parker traditionally to load the bases for Tate Barton.

Barton legged out an infield single to allow Taylor to score, but Daugherty rounded third too far and was picked off trying to get back to the bag.

Fort Gibson starter Weston Rouse, also a lefthander, shut down Kingfisher in order in the sixth and seventh, setting up the final rally.

The sophomore eventually earned the win as he surrendered four hits, struck out five and walked six.

Friesen was saddled with the hard-luck loss as only one of the three runs was earned.

Taylor collected two of Kingfisher’s hits and scored both runs.

The Jackets’ season ended with a 26-12 record. The Tigers moved into the semifinals with a 33-3 mark.