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By John Bednarowski
Cherokee Tribune Sports Editor
DALLAS - One thing Sequoyah fans learned the hard way Wednesday - extreme heat will render aluminum bats useless.
At least that was the case as East Paulding pitcher Zack Wheeler used his overpowering fastball to the tune of a complete-game, three-hit, 12-strikeout performance as the Raiders downed the Chiefs, 6-1, in a key Region 5AAAA contest.
The loss dropped Sequoyah (10-3) into a second-place tie with East Paulding (11-1) at 9-1 in region play, a game behind Alexander, which played Osborne late Wednesday night.
The setback also ended a 10-game winning streak and halted a run where the Chiefs had scored 107 runs over that same 10-game period. The loss sets up another important region matchup Friday when Sequoyah travels to Alexander.
"It really doesn't make me feel bad that we have to play (East Paulding and Alexander) back-to-back," Chiefs coach Steve Bohn said. "We expect to see (Alexander's Dylan) Smith. He transferred in this year from Chapel Hill. We saw him last year. He throws in the mid to upper 80s."
Bohn may like the matchup with Smith because mid to upper 80s will seem slow compared to what Sequoyah faced Wednesday.
Wheeler, whose fastball registers in the low 90s, set the tone early, striking out the first two Chiefs he faced. He followed the first inning by striking out the side in both the second and third. By that time, the Raiders had a 4-1 lead.
"Wheeler pitched a great game against us," Bohn said. "He was on (Wednesday) and he was throwing first-pitch strikes.
Unfortunately for Sequoyah, the same could not be said for starter Jack Metraw. Metraw labored his way through four innings, consistently pitching behind in the count and trying to throw everything on the outside corner of the plate. His seven-hit, six-run, five-walk evening could have been worse had it not been for the accurate strong arms of outfielders Nate Grummer and Matt Wilson, who combined to throw out three runners - two at the plate and one at third.
"Jack was off for us," Bohn said. "We can't defend five walks, but I went with the guy I thought would do a great job for us (Wednesday) and he was just off."
East Paulding got on the scoreboard with a run in the first and then added three more in the second, thanks to two hits, two walks and a hit batsman. Geraldo Mancilla provided the big hit of the inning, a two-run double to give the Raiders a 3-1 lead.
East Paulding's Stewart Young completed the Raiders' scoring in the sixth when he hit a two-run double to straightaway center field.
Sequoyah scored its only run of the game in the second when, with two outs, Daniel Dilbeck punched a single through the right side of the infield for the Chiefs' first hit. He was followed by Clint McNeil's opposite-field RBI double into the right-field corner. Tucker Adams got Sequoyah's only other hit, a right-field single in the fifth.
"We would have liked to seen a better game and a closer score," Bohn said. "But I told the guys, it was unlikely we were going to win all the rest of them."
One thing the Chiefs will have going for them in the second half of season is the schedule. So far, Sequoyah has only played three region games at home. That will change after Friday's contest against Alexander.
"We finally get some home games," Bohn said. "We'll see what happens when everyone comes up there."
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Your articles are great, they are better than we get in our own county. I really enjoy reading them. Thanks, East Paulding Raider