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RUTLEDGE – Brady Smith recorded 13 strikeouts on the mound and added a homerun at the plate as Grainger blanked Claiborne 5-0 Thursday afternoon at The Den.

Smith surrendered two hits and two walks on the day. Kade Lucas and Braylnn Sell each had doubles for the Grizzlies. The game featured a number of future collegiate players as Smith’s (Virginia Tech) counterpart Tyler Myatt (Walters State) struck out eight Grainger batters and the Bulldogs’ hits came from Dylan Foster (UVA-Wise) and Joe Houser (Alice Lloyd).

Lucas produced the first run of the game when his double to left scored Bryson Davis in the third inning. A few plays later, Smith hit a homer to center field to make it 3-0. Run number four came in the fourth inning when Nolan Wallace scored on a passed ball and the final run of the contest also came on a passed ball when Landon Dalton came home in the fifth. The Grizzlies will be the number-two seed in the upcoming district tournament as they have gone perfect so far this season against Cocke County, Claiborne, and Cherokee. Grainger will face Cherokee one more time in the regular season, a game in Rogersville on April 25.

The Grizzlies return to action on Friday afternoon as they travel to Knoxville to battle Halls.