Caldwell County has the inside track to the No. 1 seed for the 7th District baseball tournament after winning 11-4 at Madisonville-North Hopkins on Tuesday.
Ethan Ramage went six strong innings on the mound at Elmer Kelley Stadium as the Tigers improved to 10-2 on the season and 3-0 in district play.
Caldwell, which has won 10 of its last 11 outings, used three-run frames in the third, fourth and sixth innings.
When the teams last met, Caldwell scored twice in the bottom of the seventh inning to beat Madisonville 2-1 in last year’s 7th District championship game.
But the Tigers did not need any late heroics this time around.
Ramage (2-0) surrendered six hits while striking out five, walking four and allowing two earned runs.
Mitchell Phelps pitched the seventh to finish up the win.
Ari Wells was 2-for-2 with a pair of doubles and an RBI for the Tigers while Luke Parker was 2-for-3 and scored three times.
Westin King was 1-for-3 with a double and an RBI. Drew Stevens, Derek Wilson and Channing Puckett each singled.
Each team recorded eight base hits in the contest.
For Madisonville (8-7, 2-1), Brantley Harris was 3-for-4 while Evan Lear went 2-for-3. Alex Richards was 1-for-4 and drove in two.
Ryder Sandidge and Lane Faulk each singled.
The Maroons led 2-1 after one inning. But Caldwell tied things in the second, then went up 8-1 through four innings.
The two teams will play again Thursday in Princeton.
With only three schools in the district this season – Dawson Springs is not fielding a varsity baseball team – the top seed will earn an automatic berth in the district championship game and a bid to the 2nd Region tournament.
