But Coweta (11-8, 7-5) would chip away at that lead, getting a run in the top of the fifth, two more in the sixth, and one more in the seventh before Ty Phillips, who came on relief of starter Gibson Russ with two outs in the inning, got Ty Gunter to fly out to left field to end the game with the bases loaded.

It was the fifth time the Tigers had the bases loaded in the game, as Coweta stranded 12 baserunners on the night.

The Ridgerunners didn’t fare much better in that category. Starting with a bases loaded situation in the bottom of the first that they couldn’t cash in, Grove stranded six runners themselves and hit into a pair of double plays.

But in the end it was the fourth inning that mattered. Grove led 1-0 on Russ’s sacrifice fly that scored Kody Stephenson in the first inning, but had been unable to get more off Coweta starter Justin Waller. Kaden Livermore started the fourth with a walk then advanced to second and third on a passed ball and a wild pitch before scoring on a single by Jake Spychalski.

Infield singles by Benny Steffenson and Scottie Spicer loaded the bases, and Ty Morrow promptly drove in two with a single to centerfield to make it 4-0. After a sacrifice bunt, a walk and a strikeout, Erick Ryan followed with a two-out single that scored two more. But after Livermore walked again to reload the bases, Spychalski hit into a fielder’s choice to end the inning.

“We’ll take a win any way we can get them,” Grove head coach Bret Bouher said. “We had a chance to get a couple early and we had more chances even in the big inning. That’s part of baseball. Their kid made some pitches and they got out of it.”

After building the big lead, the Ridgerunners then had to sweat it out over the final two-and-a-half innings. The Tigers used a pair of errors and a single to load the bases with no outs in the top of the fifth. Dakota Remington then put Coweta on the scoreboard with a single to right centerfield.

But Russ got a pair of pop-ups and a grounder to short to get out of the jam. It was an up-and-down day for the senior lefthander. A pair of walks and a wild pitch on a third strike loaded the bases in the first, but a strikeout of the Tigers’ Jake Northern ended the threat. That began a stretch where Russ retired seven of the next nine batters before running into trouble in the fifth.

Further problems awaited in the sixth, when a single and a pair of walks loaded the bases again for Coweta. An errant throw on an attempted double play scored two runs before that inning ended.

Northern, meanwhile, kept the Tigers in it, setting the Ridgerunners down in order in the fifth and sixth innings after relieving Waller in the fourth.

A lead-off double by Ryan Clark started Coweta’s final rally in the seventh. Russ then got a pair of outs before another double by Colton Martin scored Clark to make it 6-4. Jake Homel followed with an infield single, ending Russ’s day. Ty Phillips came on in relief and, after issuing a walk to load the bases, was able to get the final out.

“Gibson obviously didn’t have his best stuff today,” Bouher said. “But he’s tough and he pitched well and got out of everything he had to.”

With the win the Ridgerunners are all but guaranteed second place in District 5A-3 and a home regional. The Ridgerunners now have a three-game lead over the third place Tigers with two games remaining against Skiatook and one against East Central next week. Grove will also have to make up Thursday’s game at Coweta, which was rained out.

The Tigers also have a make-up game next week against Claremore.

“It’s not done yet, but that’s a big one for us,” Bouher said. “It puts us in the driver’s seat. Obviously hosting a regional is your mission when you start because it gives you a better chance to get where you want to be.”

Grove will travel to Skiatook on Monday before playing the Bulldogs at home on Tuesday. Both games are scheduled for 4:30 p.m.