Columbus East High School

When Columbus East baseball took the field Monday night against Southport, memories of last Friday’s narrow defeat to Bloomington South were fresh. The Olympians had let a 1–0 lead slip away on Friday, losing in extra-innings and they appeared in danger of a similar fate after Southport knotting this one at 3–3 in the top of the seventh. But East refused to head into extra innings again. After falling behind 2–1 early, East rallied for a 3–2 advantage with two runs in the bottom of the fifth. Southport answered with a run in the seventh to force a tie, but the Olympians struck instantly in their half of the frame. A one-out single set the stage, and patient plate appearances—four walks in the inning—loaded the bases and brought in the decisive run, sealing a 4–3 victory. Game Flow | Inning | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | R | H | E | | Southport | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 0 | | Columbus East | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 4 | Key Contributors: Eli Tindell (Sr.): Delivered the game-tying RBI single in the fifth and drew a crucial two-out walk in the seventh. Marcus Wilkinson (Sr.): Collected two of East’s three hits, including the leadoff single in the decisive seventh. Freshman Landyn Jewell (Fr.): Locked down the final two outs in relief, preserving the one-run margin. Drew Rotert (Sr.): Worked 6⅓ innings, yielding three runs (two earned) on six hits with three strikeouts and only one free pass. Statistical Highlights East pitchers combined for a 2.00 ERA on the night, issuing just two walks across seven innings and striking out three. Despite managing just three hits, the Olympians capitalized on four Southport errors and six walks to generate four runs. Southport’s rally featured a two-out triple in the seventh, but East’s defense steadied afterward to send the game to its final frame. With the victory, Columbus East snaps a four-game skid and moves to 6–11 on the season. This win also avenges Friday’s extra‑innings loss and demonstrates the resilience of a squad that battled adversity throughout the evening. No rest for the O's: The Olympians have no time to celebrate last night's exciting win as they head to Batesville, Indiana tonight (5/6) to battle the Bulldogs of Batesville High School, then head to Greensburg on Wednesday night(5/7) to face the Greensburg Pirates, and then face their cross-town rivals Columbus North on Friday, May 9th at home with a later start time of 7 p.m.-- Friday night under the lights! Good luck O's!!