EXPLOSIVE FOURTH SPARKS MOSLEY TO REGION FINA

Through three innings, it appeared Mosley might be in for a seven-inning battle with Gulf Breeze in Tuesday’s Region 1-6A Semifinal game. Then the fourth inning happened. A grand slam by Justin Kelley sparked an 11-run inning for the home Dolphins en route to a 13-2 run-rule victory. Mosley (24-2) moves on to the region finals Tuesday where it will play host to Clay (19-11) at 7 p.m. Gulf Breeze’s season ends at 20-8. With another victory, the Dolphins will advance to the state semifinals for the third consecutive season. That seemed in doubt early on Tuesday after Gulf Breeze plated two runs in the top of the first inning, but Mosley answered with runs in the second and third to tie it up before blowing the game open in the fourth. The Dolphins sent 17 hitters to the plate in the inning, posting five hits and seven walks, with nine Mosley batters reaching in a row at one point. The big blow came on Kelley’s grand slam, but Mosley coach Jon Hudson said it was a one-out single by Drew Yeager that really sparked the rally. “That inning started with Drew Yeager,” he said. “He got a big one-out hit for us there. I felt like if we could get one of those first guys at the bottom of the lineup on base, we’d have the top coming up. That hit by Drew really got us going.” R.J. Yeager and Michael Cullen followed with walks, which brought up Kelley, who worked the count to 3-1 before smoking the next pitch over the left field fence to make it 6-2. “I was really kind of thinking, ‘why don’t we take right here and be smart,’” Hudson said. “But (Kelley) was smart enough to hit it out of the park.” The home run came off of Gulf Breeze reliever Carson Reeder, one of five pitchers to take the mound in the fourth for the visitors. Gulf Breeze starter Jack Martin left the game after loading the bases and took the loss, giving up four earned runs on seven hits and four walks with a strikeout. Brett Roberson reached on an error and came around to score on a wild pitch, with an RBI single to right field by Nicky Agosto scoring Jack Taylor to make it 8-2. Bases loaded walks to R.J. Yeager and Michael Cullen scored two more runs, with Kelley getting hit by a pitch to force in another to make it 11-2. Roberson followed with a two-RBI single to left field to score R.J. Yeager and Cullen to round out the scoring for Mosley. Cullen came on to close it out on the mound in the top of the fifth and retired Gulf Breeze in order. Agosto started and went the first four innings to get the win, giving up one earned run on three hits and two walks with a strikeout. Kelley finished 2 for 3 with five RBI and a run to lead the Mosley offense, with Roberson finishing 3 for 4 with two RBI and two runs. Seth Etienne also had two hits, while Geoffrey Lancaster had a hit, two walks, and an RBI, and Drew Yeager a hit, a walk, an RBI, and two runs. Cullen walked three times and R.J. Yeager two times, with the latter scoring twice and the former once. Agosto was 1 for 2 with an RBI. Brandon Schrepf led Gulf Breeze with two hits, while Braden Massey walked twice and scored a run. Gulf Breeze 200 00 — 2 3 2 Mosley 011 (11) x — 13 11 1 Martin (L), Reeder 4, McLaurine 4, Murphy 4, Wines 4 and Dittmer. Agosto (W), Cullen 5 and Lancaster. LOB: Mosley 8, Gulf Breeze 2. E: Green 2, R. Yeager. HR: Kelley. Sac: D. Yeager. DP: Mosley 5-3, 6-3. RBI — Kelley 5, Roberson 2, R. Yeager, Cullen, Lancaster, Agosto, D. Yeager.

EXPLOSIVE FOURTH SPARKS MOSLEY TO REGION FINA

Photo Credit: Patti Blake

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