Christian County junior Elijah Underhill turned in a dominant performance on the mound in Friday’s matchup with visiting Hopkinsville, striking out 18 batters to send the Colonels to a 4-3 victory.
The win is the first for the Colonels over the Tigers since 2019, and it gives them a leg up in the race for the 8th-District’s top seed. The two teams will square off again in a week at Tiger Field.
Kaden West led off the game with a double and went to 3rd on a sacrifice bunt, but a pair of strikeouts ended the threat and started a stretch of 12 straight Tiger batters to go down on strikes.
While overshadowed by Underhill’s performance, Hoptown starting pitcher Jacob Dilday was up to the challenge, allowing only two baserunners on a pair of walks through four innings.
However, Dilday ran into trouble in the bottom of the 5th when Jacob Jenkins led off the frame with a double and eventually came home on an RBI single by Robert Irving. A pair of bases-loaded walks brought in two more runs, and the Colonels led 4-0 after Brylle Javier bunted his way on and Underhill crossed the plate.
The Tigers got back in the game with two outs in the 6th when Dilday reached on an error and Preston Chaudoin followed with a single. Another Colonel error put Hoptown on the scoreboard before a two-run miscue allowed the Tigers to trim the margin to a single run.
Dilday retired the Colonels in order in the bottom of the 6th, but Underhill closed the show in the 7th with a pair of strikeouts and a groundout to preserve the victory.
Underhill picked up his third win of the season, allowing two hits with a single walk.
Dilday scattered four hits over six innings, allowing four earned runs with six walks and nine strikeouts.
The Colonels stop a two-game skid to improve to 15-3 overall. Hopkinsville slips to 3-8 and will look to avenge the loss next Friday when Christian County visits Tiger Field.
