No. 1 Douglass Completes Sweep of Harleton + Advances to Regional Finals

KILGORE -- The top-ranked Douglass Indians didn't commit one error, allow one run or strike out even once during its regional semifinal series with Harleton.

Matthew Wallace pitched six shutout innings and Douglass racked up seven extra-base hits in an 8-0 win in Game 2 on Friday night at Driller Park, which advanced the Indians to next week's Class A Region III championship against defending state champion Carlisle.

It will be the fourth consecutive season Douglass and Carlisle will meet in the playoffs. Carlisle defeated Douglass in last year's regional final.

Wallace wasn't overpowering, but dominant and efficient. He allowed Harleton just one hit through six innings, and needed only 67 pitches. Bryce Westbrook pitched out of a bases-loaded situation in the seventh to keep Harleton off the scoreboard for the series.

"It's been there all year and that's been a big part of our game -- pitching and defense," said Douglass coach Eugene Lafitte. "Swinging the bat's great, but if you can throw strikes and make the routine play you're going to win a lot of ballgames."

Douglass, which scored all of its runs and collected all but one of its hits in one inning Thursday night, spread out the offensive production in the series clincher. The Indians pounded Harleton for 12 hits, including six doubles and one home run.

"We hit the ball tonight," Lafitte said. "Last night I thought we hit the ball, but we just hit it right at them and they made good plays. We didn't have a strikeout tonight and we didn't have a strikeout yesterday. I preach to them that if we can put the ball in play and put pressure on them good things will happen for us. We came out and swung the bat a little bit better today."

Brandon Stanfield went 2-for-3 with two doubles and three RBIs, while Taylor Schroeder doubled twice and drove in two runs to lead Douglass' offensive attack. Wallace ripped a solo homer in the fifth inning, while Westbrook finished the night 2-for-2 with a double, RBI, three runs scored and two walks. Trenton Carrigan was 2-for-4 and scored a run.

Douglass took advantage of four consecutive walks by Harleton starter Will Davis to grab a 1-0 lead in the first inning. The Indians then extended their lead to 3-0 in the third on Westbrook's RBI single and a run-scoring double off the bat of Stanfield.

The lead swelled to five runs in the fifth on Wallace's towering homer over the left-field wall and another RBI double by Stanfield. Douglass capped the scoring with the three runs in the seventh, coming on a run-scoring single by Hunter Lee and Schroeder's two-run double to left field.