Death and taxes are getting company. And when it comes to the inevitable, the company is in the form of the Bridgeport High School baseball.

 

The Indians have once again punched a ticket to the Class AA state tournament in Charleston next week. The Tribe will be looking to extend their current unprecedented history – in any class – by winning a sixth-straight state baseball title.

 

Bridgeport didn’t lose a game in the postseason to make it back to Appalachian Power Park. Earlier this week, the Indians swept a talented Lewis County squad in the Region II final to have a chance to add to their history.

 

BHS is now 28-6. The Indians open the Class AA tournament at 4:30 p.m. Thursday in Charleston against 19-9 Shady Spring.

 

Not bad for a team that, once again, replaced a bevy of starters and all-staters from last year’s state title squad.

 

“I’m proud of what these kids have accomplished, and I’m always amazed to see it. I’ve said it before, but I think it helps tremendously we have kids actively involved in our jayvee program and so many of them bide their time in what becomes a pecking order,” said veteran Coach Robert Shields. “We have a lot of kids this year that waited for their senior year to contribute and you see them excelling. That’s what makes this season, this run special.”

 

Things continued to be special in the postseason as Bridgeport got past the Minutemen by a 4-2 score in the first game Monday on its home field. Tim Via was the main culprit in assisting BHS to the winner’s circle as the right-handed pitcher tossed a seven-inning game where he gave up six hits and one walk, while striking out 11.

 

The Tribe collected seven hits and six walks with Ryan Goff and Vincenzo Cava leading the way with two hits each. Both players had doubles in their total.

 

The one issue in the win is one that has been a problem all season. The Tribe missed out on opportunities to play more runs as the team stranded nine runners, including six in scoring position.

 

On Tuesday in Weston Bridgeport started out of the gates strong and were leading 6-0 after four innings of play and 8-2 heading into the bottom of the seventh. Lewis County managed to plate a pair of runs in its last at-bat of the season, but it wasn’t enough.

 

Connor Robe picked up the win going five and one-third innings. He yielded four hits and three walks, while striking out three and allowing a pair of runs. Tyler Wilkinson closed the game and allowed two runs and a hit without a walk, while striking out three.

 

Bridgeport again left plenty on base; this time 10. However, the visitors were able to get more than enough from their seven hits and 10 walks that came from four different LCHS pitchers.

 

Quintin Reep was the only BHS player with more than one hit. He collected two hits on the day, while Cava collected a double.

 

“Continually leaving runners on base is a worry and it’s cost us in a few of our losses. You definitely don’t want that to be the reason your season ends so we’re still working on it,” Shields said. “We’re going to try to have as much live action, getting people on base and in various situation, to make the feel comfortable in actual game situations. We want them to stay sharp and take advantage of being on base.”

 

The winner of Thursday’s Bridgeport game will play the winner of Frankfort (26-5) and Scott (27-7). That game will start approximately 50 minutes after the game between BHS and Shady Spring. The winner of those Thursday games will compete for the ‘AA’ title at 10 a.m. Saturday.

 

“I’m excited for the kids because there’s a lot of pressure to keep this going and I’m proud of how they responded,” Shields said. “They work hard in practice, don’t back down from the competition and we’ve managed to get better.”

 

The games will be streamed live on MetroNews.com. You can also listen to Bridgeport play on 103.3 WAJR FM.