BASEBALL: Claremore’s rally falls short in final tune-up before postseason

With the tying run on second and the home crowd on its feet, Claremore’s comeback effort was one swing away from completion.

However, a deep flyout to center field ended the drama as the Zebras fell 7-6 to Charles Page (Sand Springs) in a thrilling nondistrict showdown Saturday at Legendary Legion Field at Murray-Pixley Park.

The Sandites (20-16) built a 6-0 lead behind a three-run homer from Jackson Turney in the top of the fourth and an early scoring surge that included RBI contributions from Kaden Pope and a bases-loaded walk drawn by Jayden Bussel.

Turney’s towering shot to right field in the fourth was the biggest blow, stretching Sand Springs’ lead from 3-0 to 6-0 and putting Claremore on its heels.

However, the Zebras (28-9) roared back with resilience, chipping away in the bottom half.

A two-run double from Austin Heath and a fielder’s choice RBI from Brad Hoisington cut the lead in half, and back-to-back run-scoring plays by Jaden Franco — including a two-RBI double in the fifth — brought Claremore within 6-5.

Zebras pitcher Curtis Waters gave Claremore a chance late, tossing three solid innings of relief with three strikeouts and just one earned run — a seventh-inning RBI double from Isaac Sensintaffar that gave the Sandites a crucial insurance run at 7-5.

That run proved vital.

In the bottom of the seventh, the Zebras staged one final rally. After a leadoff walk to Jax Van Valkenburg and a double by Dan Harrington, Franco had a chance to tie it but struck out swinging.

Heath scored on a fielder’s choice to trim it to 7-6, but the rally ended on a flyout to center.

Franco went 2-for-4 with two RBIs to lead Claremore at the plate. Heath, Harrington and Van Valkenburg also had extra-base hits, while the defense turned one double play.

Sand Springs got multi-hit efforts from Sensintaffar and Pope, with Turney driving in a game-high three runs. Skylir Luce earned the win on the mound, scattering seven hits over 4.1 innings.