Austin Benson pitches big for Mary Persons in key region win

PERRY -- Mary Persons took advantage of a litany of Perry mistakes, got a clutch pitching performance from a pitcher with a heavy heart and won a game it had to have to retain playoff hopes with a 7-1 win Tuesday night GHSA Region 2-AAAA action.

The Bulldogs (13-9, 4-5) cashed in a wild pitch on a strikeout and then an error in the first inning to take a 2-0 lead on a Ryan Steed single.

Steed extended the lead to 4-0 in the third on another two-RBI single and then came around to score for a 5-0 advantage.

Perry (11-10, 7-3) committed six errors in the game's first five innings, including a costly two-base mistake in the fifth that scored another pair of Bulldogs to put the game out of reach.

On the very day that he buried his grandfather, Mary Persons starter Austin Benson went the distance to pick up the victory. Benson surrendered just two hits and struck out four in an efficient 85-pitch performance.

THREE WHO MATTERED

Benson: The right-hander coaxed the Panthers into 10 ground-ball outs and a pair of double plays. He lost the shutout with two-outs in bottom of the seventh.

Drew Martens: Benson's counterpart did not pitch poorly, he just didn't get much help. The tall senior, who signed last week with ABAC, struck out nine before being lifted in the fifth with a pitch count just shy of 100.

Steed: The Bulldogs' first baseman finished the night with four RBI on a pair of singles. He also walked and scored in the fifth.

THEY SAID IT

Mary Persons head coach Jonathan Gastley on the importance of the victory: "We had three big region games that we let get away from us earlier with West Laurens, Upson-Lee and Veterans. We told them that their playoffs start now. No doubt, this was a big win."

Gastley on Benson's performance: "I can't say enough about him. I tip my cap to him. His grandfather passed away, he was at his funeral (Tuesday) and then he comes out here and pitches a gem like that. He dug deep, and that took a lot of guts from that kid. I'm very, very proud of him."

Gastley on his opportunistic offense: "At this level, if you put the ball in play, things are going to happen. We're not going to have guys who bang it around off of the fence and things like that, so we have to manufacture runs. We've got to put it in play, put bunts down, hit and run and do things like that. Fortunately (Tuesday), it worked out for us."

WHAT'S NEXT

Mary Persons hosts Upson-Lee on Wednesday in a huge game for both teams that will go a long way in determining the final playoff representative from Region 2-AAAA, while Perry looks to regroup when it welcomes Rutland on Friday.

This story was originally published April 12, 2016 at 9:58 PM with the headline "Austin Benson pitches big for Mary Persons in key region win ."