SDN Sports Editor

The Tigers are enjoying the home cooking.

With rain washing out the field at Merkel, the Badgers and the Tigers switched their game to Moffett Field Friday, with the Tigers escaping with their perfect district record intact in a 9-7 win.

Snyder (13-3, 3-0) jumped out to an 8-0 lead after two innings, only to see Merkel take advantage of some defensive miscues to plate six runs in the third and make what had the makings of a blowout into a close, pressure-packed contest.

“We jumped on them and let them back in with mental mistakes,” head coach Charles Bollinger said. “Somehow, they put the pressure on us. I told the guys we need to keep pressure on the other team. One of these days, we’ll put together a complete seven innings.”

The pressure was squarely on Merkel and starter Chris Cobb at the start, as the first three Snyder batters reached base in the first inning.

Blake Grimmett, who went 3-for-3 with a walk, three runs and two steals, led off the game with a base hit and promptly stole second. After Bradley Price walked, Jordan Dea loaded the bases on a bunt hit, and Isaac Ramon drove in the first run with a sacrifice fly to deep center.

Price scored on a dropped fly ball off the bat of Eric Martinez before Hadley Hirt drilled a fastball into the right centerfield gap to score Dea and pinch runner Lico Castillo and make it 4-0.

Snyder starter Ty Collier then struck out the side in the top of the second, and the Snyder offense again went to work with four runs in the bottom of the second.

Collier went 2 1-3, allowing three runs on three hits and striking out three.

Marcus Villarreal opened the inning with a base hit and a steal, and Grimmett followed with his second hit of the game. Price drew his second walk to load the bases, and Villarreal scored on an error to keep the bases jammed with no out.

Ramon hit an infield single to make it 6-0, Alex Neal drew a bases-loaded walk and Hirt delivered his third RBI of the game to make it 8-0.

The Tigers left three on base in second.

“We should have blown the game open there,” Bollinger said.

Instead, Merkel clawed back thanks to some shaky defensive play by the Tigers.

A balk, two errors and a wild pitch led to six runs, giving Merkel new life and turning the potential shutout into a two-run contest.

An RBI groundout by Ramon made it 9-6 in the third, and reliever Dustyn Williams (4-1) kept Merkel at bay for 3 2-3 innings until Castillo came in and stifled the final comeback effort in the seventh, fanning the last Badger hitter he faced.

Dea was 2-for-4 with a pair of runs and an RBI. Ramon drove in two runs in going 2-for-4, and Villarreal and Martinez each added a hit and a run.

“Merkel is scrappy, and they started getting confidence,” Bollinger said, adding that his pitching staff did a solid job of stemming the tide after Merkel’s big third inning. “Dustyn did a great job and Lico did too, coming in a closing the door. These guys know I have confidence in them, and I expect them to come through and get the job done.”

The Tigers will continue their march through district Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Seminole.

The Indians blanked the Denver City Mustangs Friday, 12-0.

Lamesa and Sweetwater were rained out Friday. The contest originally was scheduled to played at Sweetwater, but rain forced the teams to move it to Lamesa, where it also was washed out.

The game was rescheduled for Saturday.

District 3-3A Standings

Season District

Team W L W L

Snyder 13 3 3 0

Sweetwater 13 3 2 0

Seminole 7 6 2 1

Merkel 6 6 1 2

Lamesa 2 12 0 2

Denver City 7 12 0 3