If you were for the W.S. Neal Eagles, it was a good first inning. If you were for the Tigers of T.R. Miller, it was a bad inning. But either way you looked at it, it spelled a 4-1 win for the W.S. Neal Eagle baseball team Tuesday in Brewton over the Tigers.
With the win for the Eagles, W.S. Neal improved to 17-7 overall while the No. 7-ranked Tigers dropped to 13-5.
W.S. Neal plated three runs inning on three hits and one hit batter and added an insurance run in the top of the sixth while holding the Tigers to one lone run in the bottom of the fourth to seal the win by three.
Brian Settle kept the Tigers guessing at the plate and on the bases as he went the complete game for the Eagles and allowed six hits, one run, walked and hit and struck out four. But when the Tigers got on base, Settle had two pickoffs and the Tigers were caught stealing twice and had another running error in the second inning.
“I thought we came out and swung the bats early like we did against Thomasville the other night,” Eagle head coach Coy Campbell said. “We would sit on it after that and that is what we have been trying to work on was not just sitting on it. Brian threw well tonight and he has thrown well all year. He goes out and gives up one run and when he does that, I like our chances. He is going to be big for us down the stretch. We will just have to wait and see what happens with the Thomasville and Jackson series. Hopefully we will get in the playoffs.”
Tiger head coach Jim Hart said the first inning and mistakes on the bases cost his team Tuesday.
“We had a bad first inning and six base running mistakes and you can’t win close ballgames like that whether it is Neal or whoever,” Hart said. “Settle threw good for them. He did a good job and we knew he would. We had a chance but we can’t do what we did on the bases tonight. I don’t know if we were just to anxious or wanting to do something and wanting to make something happen, but that is not smart baseball. We are better than that.”
While Settle earned the win on the mound for W.S. Neal, Jacob Fillmore took the loss for the Tigers. Fillmore went four innings and allowed four hits, three earned runs, walked none, hit one and struck out six.
Darby Black went the final three innings for the Tigers and allowed three hits, one earned run, walked one and struck out four.
At the plate for the Eagles of East Brewton, Hunter Mullins swung a hot bat going 2-for-04 with a double. Reid Johnson also swung a hot bat as he was 1-for-4 with a double and two RBIs.
Logan Williamson and Settle were both 1-for-3 while Christian Purvis was 2-for-3 with one RBI. Dylan Godwin added an RBI in the win for W.S. Neal.
For the Tigers, Kyle Davis was 2-for-2 and Cody Smith was 2-for-3 in the designated hitter role for the Tigers.
Kevin Davis and Fillmore were both 1-for-3.
Both teams left five runners on base in the loss. Of the five runners left on for T.R. Miller, the Tigers left runners on second and third in the first inning and one on second in the second inning and another in the seventh.
W.S. Neal left the bases loaded in the sixth inning.
W.S. Neal was scheduled to play Atmore Thursday and will be home against Flomaton Monday. A doubleheader with Jeff Davis in Montgomery was cancelled.
The Tigers of T.R. Miller are scheduled to play an area series with Bayside Academy Thursday and Friday. The two teams will play one game in Brewton Thursday at 5 p.m. and a doubleheader Friday at 5 and 7 p.m.

TRM JV 6, WSN 3
In a JV game Tuesday before the varsity game, T.R. Miller doubled up the Eagles 6-3.
T.R. Miller scored three runs each in the third and fourth innings while W.S. Neal scored one run each in the first, third and fifth innings.
Jared Cooper, Ryann Gray, and Zac Griffin all pitched in the win for T.R. Miller. The trio went five innings and allowed six hits, three runs, two earned, walked seven, struck out three and hit two batters.
At the plate, Jones Manning was 1-for-3 with one RBI and Griffin was 1-for-2 with one RBI. Chris Jones was 1-for-2 and Lowell Swain was 1-for-2 with one RBI and a double.
Tim McDonald was 1-for-2 with a double and two RBIs and Caden Lodge was 1-for-2 with a triple.
For W.S. Neal, Tyler Joyner took the loss on the mound.
At the plate for the Eagles, Brandon Carmichael was 1-for-3 while Miles Powell was 1-for-2. Michael Williams was 2-for-2 with a double and Alex O’Keane was 2-for-2.
W.S. Neal’s record fell to 5-8-1 with the loss while the Tigers of T.R. Miller improved to 4-3.