Derrick Webb, Reporter10:41 p.m. EDT April 4, 2016
CHILLICOTHE - The beginning was rusty, the middle was lackluster but the end, well the end was sweet.
But there was one constant bright spot in all of that: Collin Cory.
On the opening night of Scioto Valley Conference play, Cory and his Adena Warriors bested Southeastern by a final of 3-1 in eight innings.
And even with the temperature in the uppers 30s, Cory continue to deliver fireball after fireball from the pitcher's mound.
"Collin's nickname is 'bulldog' and tonight he showed why they call him that," Adena coach Tom Barr said. "He really just kept going at them. We had Jonathan (Thomas) warmed up and ready to go and Collin didn't want to give the ball up. I felt like he got stronger as the game went on tonight."
The senior threw all eight innings, fanning eight batters, allowing four base knocks, and giving up just one earned run. His performance not only gave the Warriors (2-1, 1-0 SVC) a conference-opening victory but it also allowed them to bounce back from a tough outing this past weekend.
"We talked about being able to stick to your guns after the game tonight," Barr said. "This team is used to winning but they don't get excited about many things prematurely. They don't try to make things happen too hard. After a tough loss Saturday, it was nice to come out and bounce back like this while beating a very good Southeastern team. Both of the pitchers (Southeastern) threw at us threw well today. It's huge for us to get back into the win column."
The Panthers (3-3, 0-1 SVC) scored the contest's first run in their very first at-bat.
After Cory retired the first batter he faced, Southeastern's Rex Hartman drew a four-pitch walk and proceeded to steal second base. After Carson Stauffer moved Hartman to third on a groundout to the pitcher, shortstop Owen Diehl drove a 3-2 delivery into the outfield grass to score Hartman and make it 1-0.
But misfortunately for Southeastern, Cory had seen enough of that.
In the second, third, and fourth innings, the Panthers went down in order. Meanwhile, Adena got a leadoff single from Jake Dawson in the top of the third before he swiped second. After advancing to third on a passed ball, Dawson scored on an RBI groundout from Cory, tying the game 1-1.
And that's the way it stayed for what seemed like an eternity; especially with bitter wind chills.
The Panthers had a shot to retake the lead in the bottom of the fifth with catcher Hunter Hopkins standing on second and one out. The Warriors had their shot to grab an edge with right fielder Hayden Henness standing on third and one gone in the top of the inning.
But neither took advantage of the opportunities. Instead, Cory took matters into his own hands in the top of the eighth.
After he singled into right field, Cory advanced to past second and onto third thanks to a Panthers' fielding error. Second baseman Gunnar Free then drew a free pass before Jonathan Thomas hit a line drive into center, deep enough for Cory to tag from third and give the Warriors a 2-1 lead.
Braden Wilburn then followed suit by knocking in Free — who had stolen second base — with an RBI single to make it 3-1.
In the bottom of the eighth, Cory struck out two batters and saw his catcher, Bo Dratwa, pick a runner off at first to seal the deal.
"Braden has been big for us all year and he's one of our leaders," Barr said. "He doesn't strike out much and he moves the ball. We bury him in that four-hole every game and he sees a lot of offspeed stuff. But he battles."
Southeastern's Tanner Popp (1-2) took the loss on the mound, hurling three innings of relief and allowing two earned runs on three hits.
At the dish, Wilburn led the Warriors by going 2-for-3 with an RBI. Cory finished 1-for-4 with a run and an RBI while JD Blevins also went 2-for-3.
For the Panthers, Hunter Hopkins led the way offensively with a 2-for-3 outing. Popp finished 1-for-3 and Diehl was 1-for-3 with an RBI.
Adena will return to action Wednesday evening as they host Adena. Southeastern will get back to work Tuesday, traveling to Vinton County.
Twitter: @dw1509