Sports correspondent

The Harrison County Thorobreds dismantled the Clay County Tigers Thursday night, 13-0, in the opening round of the state baseball tournament. The win propelled the Breds into the championship, and ended the Tigers' dream season.

Clay County (24-9) was a team on a mission. A team of nearly all seniors, the squad worked its way into the finals with impressive wins over Boyd County and Fleming-Neon to win the Section 4 title. In the school history, no team had made it past the semi-finals of the region, let alone into the final four. Unfortunately for the squad, they drew powerhouse Harrison (40-1) and ran headlong into a brick wall. The Breds unleashed on Clay's senior pitcher Vic Sizemore (7-2) to the tune of seven runs in the first inning, ending the game before it began.

"We did what we've done all season: hit the ball," said coach Mac Whitaker. "We took them out of the game right off the bat, and they were never able to recover. Hitting has been our strong suit all year, and once again it did the trick for us."

Will Renaker collected the win for the Breds, working two near flawless innings before being replaced by junior Whitley Casey in the third. The move, which proved to be prophetic, kept Renaker eligible for the following night's game against North Hardin in which Renaker earned the save. It was the first of four pitching changes for the Breds, who are always looking down the road.

"We've done that all season long," said Whitaker of the multiple switches. "Anytime you get a lead and can get younger players onto the mound to build experience, it has to help you down the road. This team only has four seniors on it, and I'd like to think that we'll be a strong contender again next year."

After Renaker retired the side in order in the top of the first, the Breds' offense kept the scorekeeper busy in the bottom half of the inning scoring seven runs. Junior Kiley Vaughn lit up the board first, ripping a double to score Paul Roberts and J.B. Schmidt who reached on walks. Vaughn then scored on a past ball to make it 3-0. Designated hitter Richard Dennis collected two RBI with a two-base shot down the right field line, then scored when Chad Hill drilled the fence with a double. Roberts rounded out the scoring, sending Hill across the plate with a double. The Tigers got out of the inning after trading Sizemore for senior Tim Rogers, who pitched his way out of the jam. The Breds scattered seven more runs over the next five innings before collecting the win.

"I felt pretty good on the mound against Clay County," said Renaker. "My control was pretty good, and they just had a hard time hitting me. I was surprised that they didn't hit the ball any better than they did. I guess they just had an off day."

The Breds picked up 13 runs on 11 hits, while Clay County was blanked on the board and only picked up three hits.