LAKE WALES, Fla. – Warner finishes in 3
rd place this year in the 35
th Annual Warner Invitational tournament after defeating the NAIA #2 St. Thomas Bobcats 12-3 in a non-conference matchup.
The Royals jumped out to an early 3 run lead in the 1
st inning after working the bases loaded on walks followed by a sac fly, hit, and superb base running.
St. Thomas tallied 2 runs of their own in the bottom of the 1
st but Warner took off after that and never looked back.
Warner added 3 more runs in the 2
nd inning and a 6 run 5
th inning to break the game wide open and backed that up with excellent defense and stellar pitching by
Luby Fields (3-5) and
Jake Ratledge.
Jan Martinez and
Josh Strickland each racked up a multiple hit game, going a combined 4-7, with 4 RBIs and 2 runs scored.
The Royals have 6 home games over the next 6 days, much needed home field advantage to help the team build on the confidence of defeating the #2 ranked Bobcats in the NAIA.