Senior staff writer
After opening with eight straight loses, Franklin Central finally won its first game Friday against visiting Beech Grove, 11-1, in five innings.
The Flashes took advantage of timely hitting and eight walks, including a bases-loaded walk as senior Chris Ford strolled in from third with the mandatory game-ending 10-run margin.
Franklin Central started slowly with one run in the first but then added five runs in the second and five in the fifth.
“We needed this one (win) for a long time,” FC coach John Rockey said. “We have young sophomores who haven’t learned how to hit varsity pitching yet, and we’re starting to play the way I thought we could play.”
Junior pitcher Jeremy Knott, in making his first start, gave up only one hit and one run while striking out six.
“We’ve been looking for a bright spot on the mound and we finally found one,” Rockey said. “He was throwing strikes. His fastball had good movement, and they were having trouble picking it up.”
Ford and sophomore Jarod Gillespie each drove in two runs. Knott, Matt Southwood and Devlin Porter each scored twice.
First-year Beech Grove coach Nick Purichia and his squad were hampered by giving up eight walks and committing three errors against the Flashes.
The Hornets had won two of their last four games, including a 17-2 thrashing of Tech and a 5-4 home win Thursday against Triton Central. Junior Sam Tunny blasted the winning hit with the bases loaded.