The Hopkinsville Tigers now know who they will play in the opening round of the Clark’s Pump-N-Shop Baseball State Tournament presented by UK HealthCare. Estill County claimed the 14th Region title with a 2-0 win over Hazard Friday night at Knott County Central.
The Engineers, who enter the state tournament with a record of 16-17, have gotten hot at just the right time. Estill County looked to be in trouble as recently as May 15, when they lost to Garrard County 1-0 for their 4th straight defeat.
Since that time, the Engineers have won six in a row, including two in the 56th District tournament and three in the 14th Region tournament. Estill County is the 9th ranked team in the 14th Region according to the KHSAA RPI rankings.
Kenny Rose is Estill County’s top hitter with a batting average of .397. Ethan Henry is batting .340 and leads the team in home runs with two. The Engineers have only four home runs on the season, one less than Hopkinsville’s J.J. Thompson, who has five.
The Engineers top pitcher is Jax Niece, who is 6-2 for the season. He has 67 strikeouts with an ERA of 2.47. Niece pitched a six-hit shutout against Hazard in the region title game. Hopkinsville’s top four pitchers all have an ERA of 2.19 or lower.
Hopkinsville and Estill County will play in the last first round game of the tournament Friday night at 8:30 at Legends Field.
