'Jacks win third straight
Begin six-game road trip tonight at Brazos Valley
From special reports and from pumpjacksbaseball.com

It was the third straight win on Wednesday for the East Texas Pump Jacks, who defeated visiting Brazos Valley, 7-6, at Driller Park courtesy of a little hometown magic.

Kilgore High School product Pat McCrory, now a junior at the University of Texas, got an RBI single in the bottom of the eighth inning that wound up becoming the winning run. The Pump Jacks, who have played 14 games in this very first season, are now 6-8 and begin a sixgame road trip tonight at - guess where? - Brazos Valley, a 7:05 p.m. start in Bryan.

Wednesday night's game saw a couple of streaks continue:

• The 'Jacks scored in the first inning for the fifth straight game.

• The team scored at least seven runs for the seventh straight game.

The victory allowed ET to come within a game of Brazos Valley and the Coppell Copperheads, who are tied for second place. East Texas stands two games behind the first-place McKinney Marshals.

Even though the game was delayed 30 minutes by a late afternoon rain, East Texas got off to another fast start. Adam De La Garza led off with an infield single, followed by a McCrory walk. Two outs later, the two executed a double-steal and forced first baseman Terry Sperring into an error. De La Garza scored as a result to give the Jacks a 1-0 lead.

East Texas extended the lead to 3-0 in the fourth inning. Daniel Nottebart was hit by a pitch, Andrew Nettune singled, and Garrett Smith dropped a bunt single to load the bases with no outs. One out later, Keenan Duke beat out an infield single to score Nottebart. De La Garza followed by lofting a sac fly to center that brought home Nettune.

But that's when things got dicey. The Bombers responded with three runs in the top of the fifth to tie the game, then added single runs in the sixth and seventh innings to grab a 5- 3 lead. In the process, they chased starting pitcher Justin Fowler, who offered his best start of the young season. Fowler went 5 2/3 innings and scattered eight hits, allowing four runs, three of them earned. He walked four and struck out three.

Facing a late-inning deficit, the Jacks were right in their element. In the bottom of the seventh, East Texas walked their way to within a run when De La Garza, McCrory, Matt Curry, and Josh Riley drew consecutive one-out walks. Nottebart tied the game with a sacrifice fly to right field that scored Mc- Crory and allowed Curry to move up to third. When Bombers pitcher Travis Dirk uncorked a wild pitch, Curry scampered home with the goahead run.

Brazos Valley displayed a comeback spirit as well, responding with a run in the top of the eighth. The run was charged to Kory Cleveland, who relieved Fowler in the sixth and went 2 1/3 innings to pick up the victory. Cleveland (2-2), a former Carthage standout, allowed three hits and one earned run, walking three and striking out one.

With the score again tied, 6- 6, the Pump Jacks went back to work in the home half of the eight. Duke led off with a single to left, then advanced on a passed ball. One out later, Mc- Crory delivered a single down the right field line that brought home Duke for the game-winning run.

Aaron Wilkerson came on in the ninth to strike out a pair of hitters and pick up the first save in Pump Jacks history.

The East Texas offense was led by Duke, who went 2-for-4 with a run scored and an RBI. De La Garza added two runs scored and an RBI. McCrory picked up an RBI and a run with a single and two walks. It marked the fifth straight time Mc- Crory has been in the lineup and walked at least twice.

The Pump Jacks will kick off a week-long road trip on Thursday when they venture to Bryan to take on the Bombers in a twogame set.

The 'Jacks will venture to Coppell over the weekend to face the Copperheads in a pair of games. After a Monday off-day, they'll make the trip to McKinney before returning to Driller Park next Thursday, July 3. That will kick off the Pump Jacks' Independence Day Weekend celebration. Thursday's contest will be another Thirsty Thursday, with 50-cent small soft drinks. On Saturday, July 5, the Pump Jacks will host a special post-game fireworks display that is expected to surpass the awe-inspiring show fans witnessed on June 13.

A special Independence Day promotion is being planned, plus the Jacks are expected to announce a new "Family Night" discount for Sunday games beginning July 6. Details will be announced as they're finalized, so check your e-mail or log on to www.pumpjacksbaseball.com to follow all the new developments.

Tickets for the Independence Weekend celebration and the remainder of the Jacks' inaugural season schedule are on sale now.

Fans may purchase tickets at the Pump Jacks office at 1100 Stone Road, Suite 120, in Kilgore, or over the phone at (903) 218- GO ET. Tickets may also be purchased online at the team's site, pumpjacksbaseball.com, and printed on home computer.

Single-game tickets start at $5 each, or $4 for children and seniors, for grandstand general admission tickets. Upper Box seats are $8 each, and lower box seats, which feature in-your-seat wait service, are only $10 per ticket.