What a difference a couple of weeks make. Well, that and some good pitching. Back on April 5, Brentwood bombed Bayless, 18-1. However, on Thursday at Brentwood Park, the Eagles narrowly escaped with a 5-3 win over the improved Bronchos.

"Our catcher Frankie Lowe got a big (early) hit," Brentwood coach Mike Imergoot said. "Got us 2-0 right off the bat, and that was big, very big. We hit in the clutch, and we ran the bases well, and that's how you win ball games."

Both teams pitched very well. Bayless junior Alfred Parisi went the distance, striking out five while giving up seven hits.

"We're really throwing the ball well," Bayless coach Jon Robards said. "I've got three starting pitchers that keep us in ballgames. All week, it's been Alfred (Parisi), (Ben) Arrendell, then Elliott Sterett. When they pitch, we got a chance to win every time."

Brentwood's junior pitcher, Jesse Sneed, pitched into the sixth, striking out seven and giving up four hits. He confounded the middle then the bottom of the Bronchos' lineup in the second and third innings, striking out six in a row.

"We just got to get more out of our plate appearances," Bayless coach Jon Robards said. 'We went two innings early in the game without putting the ball in play, and that just kills your psyche as a team, it pumps up the other team, and gives their pitcher a lot of confidence."

Apparently, Brentwood senior catcher Lowe felt that confidence with his two-run single in the second.

"It just felt right to me, coming into this game," Lowe said. "Just stretched out ... body was feeling right, so just had to get it for my team."

The Bronchos had three consecutive hits from Ryan Wagner, Arrendell and Ethan Miller in the bottom of the fourth to score two runs. But Brentwood answered with hits from Lowe, Sneed and sophomore Nick Featherson as they tallied three more runs in the fifth.

Bayless showed fight in the bottom of the sixth, starting off with a Wagner single. He scored on an RBI by sophomore Anthony Gaynor. Senior Ryan Jones closed the game for the Eagles, putting down the Bronchos in order to end the game.

"We go from 18-1 to 5-3, but we're not into moral victories," Robards said. "We want to try and win games, and this was a winnable game for us, so we're not cheering about improving," he said.

"Brentwood is a good team, they're one of the best in the conference, we like to think we can run with them, we just didn't do it this year in the two chances we had, so try to come back next year and get them."