travis@athensnews-courier.com

The Athens Bible Trojans may have put on an offensive showcase in the away matchup against the Clements Colts on Friday night, but it was pitcher, Eli Olree, who stole the show. Olree finished with a complete game shutout, three walks, nine strikeouts and above all else, a no-hitter.

“We had a pitcher that was on,” Athens Bible head coach Bill Murrell said. “He had thrown 74 pitches last Saturday, and we got to 80 pitches at the end of the sixth tonight, I asked his dad if he wanted me to pull him and he told me if he feels good, let him go.”

Letting him go was exactly what Murrell did and it clearly paid off.

“He had two walks early on, but this kid doesn’t play basketball, he pitched all during the Fall season and practiced, baseball is his focus,” he said. “He was great.”

Drake Richter, the leadoff man for the Trojans got the first hit of the game with a single to left in the opening at bat of the game. Richter advanced to second on a balk followed by a sacrifice bunt by Cody Graviett bringing the lead runner to third with only one out. Richter was not on third for long as Connor Abernathy doubled to left field, driving in what would be the first of nine runs scored for the Trojans. Another run scored before Ethan Johnson was able to knock in the third run of the first inning on a line drive single to left field. At the end of the first inning, the Trojans held a 4-0 advantage.

Olree led off the second with a single to right field and his pinch runner, Alex Crafton, eventually came around to score in the inning on a sacrifice fly by Abernathy making it 5-0 heading into the third.

The Trojans added three more runs to their total in the fourth, two by way of stealing home by Graviett and Kacen Pierce and another Trojan, pinch-runner Luke Thrasher, who replaced Abernathy earlier in the inning after getting hit by a pitch, scored on a groundout to shortstop. At the end of the fourth, it was 8-0.

Athens Bible tallied one more run in the final inning of the game as Ethan Johnson crossed home plate on a groundout from pinch hitter, Carson Pressnell, resulting in a 9-0 finish.

“We put a different lineup in the game tonight, we started two freshman at second and short, who had a few assists tonight, but we basically hit the ball real well tonight.”

The Trojans finished with nine runs, six hits and one error.