DAILY LEADER / JONATHON ALFORD / Enterprise catcher Max Miller tags out West Lincoln runner Chase Buckles in Friday night action.

The West Lincoln Bears and the Enterprise Yellow Jackets provided another thrilling contest for their baseball fans Friday night as the Bears rallied back to clip the Jackets 10-9 in an eight inning offensive marathon in Region 7-2A baseball action at the Cow Palace.

With the win, the Bears and the Jackets are tied for first place with one loss apiece in the district race. Both teams have two games remaining on their district schedule to see who will claim this season’s Region 7-2A crown.

“Another great game by both teams,” said West Lincoln coach Steve Barrington. “This was a good win for us. Overall, I was very pleased with my guys’ effort. They kept fighting throughout the game and it paid off at the end.”

The Bears (15-3, 7-1) resume action Tuesday as they prepare to host the Loyd Star Hornets for a huge district test. Junior varsity action starts at 4:30 p.m., followed by the varsity contest at 6:30 p.m.

The Jackets (9-8, 7-1) suffered another tough loss Saturday falling to Franklin County 8-6. Enterprise will be looking to climb back into the win column Tuesday as they prepare to host East Marion for a big region test. Junior varsity action starts at 4:30 p.m., followed by the varsity contest at 6:30 p.m.

West Lincoln 9, Enterprise 8 

Enterprise came out strong and quickly set the tone of the contest as they grabbed an early 1-0 in the first inning.

West Lincoln managed to break up the Jacket’s bid for a shut out in the fourth inning to tied the game at 1-all.

In the fifth inning, the Jackets reclaimed the lead at 3-1 after pushing across two runs.

In the bottom of the fifth inning, The Bears’ offense exploded and as they hammered Enterprise with a seven run inning to claim their first lead of the game at 8-3.

The Jackets answered West Lincoln’s challenge in the sixth and seventh inning to tied the game at 8-all to force extra innings.

In the top of the eighth inning, Enterprise continued to be aggressive at the plate as they work hard to push across the potential winning run and reclaimed the lead at 9-8.

In the bottom of the eighth inning, West Lincoln, refused to go down without a fight, battled hard at the plate to get runners on base and in scoring position. Senior Chase Buckles singled in an RBI to tie the game at 9-9. With one out and runners at second and third base. Tanner Boutwell came through with the clutched hit and scored the winning run from third.

“This was another hard fought game until the very end,” said Enterprise coach Cass Brister. “Our guys did an excellent job fighting back into the contest after trailing at the end of the fifth inning and retook the lead in the eighth. Overall, it just came down to West Lincoln making the plays they needed on offense to secure the win.”

Jeremy Burns tossed the victory for the Bears collecting three strikeouts and allowed only one walk. Boutwell (4K, 0BB) saw some action on the mound.

Jeffery Daniels suffered the setback for the Jackets with three strikeouts and two walks.

Alex Neal powered the West Lincoln’s offense with three singles. Ty Forman contributed a double and a single. Bryce Temple ripped a double. Tanner Boutwell, Tyler Moak, Lofton Sills and Chase Buckles hit safely. On a correction note: Jeremy Burns recorded a single for the Bears in Tuesday’s game against Enterprise.

Jackson Cole was the top slugger for Enterprise with two doubles and a single. Austin Fuller provided a triple and two singles. Daniels helped with a pair of singles and a double. Lane Boyd ripped three singles. Josh Hardin had two singles. Conner Smith and Layne Brown hit safely.

DAILY LEADER / JONATHON ALFORD / West Lincoln second baseman makes a great catch against Enterprise.