Sanderson blasts walk-off homer as Bulldogs find way to win in extra innings

Apr. 29—MAHOMET — Mahomet-Seymour had half as many hits as Mt. Zion, Bulldogs ace pitcher Max Young didn't have his best stuff on the mound and the first six batters in the M-S lineup went a combined 4 for 20 at the plate.

The Bulldogs had their backs against the wall all game, but they ignored the odds and found a way to pull out a 5-4 walk-off win in eight innings over their Apollo Conference rival on Tuesday.

"We're just dogs," M-S senior Nolan Sanderson said. "We come out here every day and keep grinding and battling adversity as a team. We just find a way to get it done."

Sanderson was the hero of the game, as he belted a first-pitch walk-off home run over the right-field fence to lead off the bottom of the eighth inning. He was 0 for 3 heading into that final at-bat, and he made his last chance count.

"First pitch, I was like, 'I'm just going to drive this hard the opposite way,'" Sanderson said. "I got great info from my teammates, and I just wanted to hit a hard line drive the other way and see what happens. I got my pitch, and it took off from there."

While that home run was the biggest swing of the day, Sanderson may have been even more impactful on the mound. Young started the game but labored through the first four innings, surrendering four runs on 10 hits. Sanderson came on in relief and tossed four scoreless frames with five strikeouts and only four hits allowed.

"Sanderson had his day," M-S coach Nic DiFilippo said. "He changes speeds a lot, and he got a lot of weak contact. Last year, he was one of our top relievers, and (Tuesday), he put a zero on the board and found a way to win."

The Bulldogs (16-4) may have only had seven hits on the day, but the majority of them were game-changing. After Mt. Zion (11-8) scored the game's first run in the top of the second inning, M-S responded in the bottom half with a two-out, two-run single by Nolan Franz to take a 2-1 lead.

The Braves regained the lead with a three-run fourth inning, which chased Young out of the game. Austin Wike came off the bench to hit in Young's spot in the lineup, and he hit the first pitch he saw deep over the left-field wall for a solo home run to lead off the bottom of the fifth inning that brought the Bulldogs back within one run at 4-3.

"I have to tip my cap because Wike has not had many at-bats this year," DiFilippo said. "He's a pitcher for us, but he's got that sneaky power. He swings well, but he's going to pitch in college. He knew to sit on a first-pitch fastball, and sure enough, he jumped all over it. Everybody tries to preach it. It's about getting the kids to buy in. Maybe today is your day. You don't know what it's going to take, but we've got 25 guys here for a reason, and everyone battles and is ready for when their number gets called."

Aiden Banister was the next Bulldog to come up clutch at the plate. He went down 0-2 in the at-bat with two outs and a runner on third base in the sixth inning, but DiFilippo called time, pulled him aside and had him take a deep breath. A couple pitches later, he roped a game-tying double down the left-field line.