Buckner Walks Off With Opening Day Win

DURANT, Okla. – Jacob Potter struck out 12 over six innings of work, but it was Colton Buckner's heroics in the bottom of the ninth that secured Southeastern's 6-5 season-opening victory over East Central on Friday afternoon at Mike Metheny Field.
 
The win gets the Savage Storm off to a 1-0 start to the season with the final two games of the season-opening series slated for an 11 a.m. double-header on Saturday back at Mike Metheny Field.
 
SE headed to the bottom of the ninth down 5-4 after the Tigers put up five runs in the top of the eighth inning.
 
Rylee Holmes led off the inning with a double and a pinch-hitting Seth Morrow would reach on a hit-by-pitch.
 
Dylan Herd would lay down a perfect bunt up the third-base line for a hit and the throw by the Tiger pitcher was wide of first, allowing Holmes to come around third and score the tying run.
 
Two batters later with one out, ECU would intentionally walk Joseph Ramirez to load the bases for Buckner who pulled a single into left, driving in a pinch-running Jacob Savage and providing the winning run in a 6-5 final.
 
Buckner finished the contest 2-for-5 with an RBI and a run scored, while Holmes led the Storm offense with three hits and a pair of RBI.
 
Aaron Herrera added two RBI as well, while Herd collected a pair of hits.
 
Ramirez scored a run on the day and drew a game-high four walks.
 
On the hill, Jacob Potter was near unhittable for 6.0 innings, scattering three hits and striking out 12 of the 22 batters he faced.
 
Jacob Bigham would add a scoreless inning in relief with a pair of K's.
 
Logan Teske bore the brunt of the Tigers offense on the day, finishing his outing of two-thirds of an inning with five runs allowed on three hits with one strikeout.
 
Coby Langford would come on in relief in the eighth and toss the final 1.1 innings, facing the minimum four batters and collecting the win.
 
The Storm took the early lead on a Holmes RBI single in the bottom of the second that plated Reid Rice.
 
An inning later Buckner and Ramirez would come home on a Herrera two-run single to center, opening up a 3-0 lead after three innings.
 
Holmes collected another RBI in the sixth with an infield single that score Rylie Hooper for a 4-0 lead.
 
The Tigers answered in the top of the eighth with a three-run homer followed by a two-run shot to take a brief 5-4 lead, setting up Buckner's ninth-inning heroics.