Tucker Swails became the first Cougar varsity pitcher to ever throw a perfect game at Patrick County High School (PCHS) during a 6-0 win over the Bassett High School Bengals Varsity Boys Baseball team on Friday, April 21.
“I knew I had a perfect game going into the last couple of innings, but I was trying my best not to think about it because I didn’t want to ruin it,” Swails said.
During the game played at Cougar Field in Stuart, Swails went 7 innings, 21 batters up, 21 batters down.
Swails, a junior at PCHS, allowed no runs, no hits, and no walks while striking out 12.
“The last couple of innings felt just like every other inning I’ve ever thrown,” he said. “I was very comfortable with the lead we had.”
The defense added to the effort by making some big plays to keep it perfect.
The Cougars were led at the plate by Jai Penn who went 4-4 with 1 RBI and scored twice.
Swails added 2 hits and 1 RBI. Martin Sawyers added 2 RBIs and Hunter Pendleton crossed home plate twice.
“Every play made by my guys behind me was great,” Swails said. “Stuart Callahan made a diving catch in right field to save a hit. That play saved my perfect game and no-hitter.”
Recalling that when the last out was recorded, “it felt great. I just turned and smiled as all of my teammates ran after me with the water cooler,” Swails said. “After the last strikeout all of the guys stormed the field and surrounded me while dumping water all over me. It was an awesome experience.”
Tal Swails, head coach at PCHS for five years and also Tucker Swails’ father, said “I knew he was cruising the entire game, but the 6th inning is when it kind of started to register and then in the 7th, it got real.”
When Tucker “threw the last pitch and you knew it was in the books, it was just a really awesome feeling for him and the entire team,” Tal Swails said. “Obviously I’m super proud of him as his dad and his coach but I’m equally as proud of the entire team.
“The reason Perfect Games are so elusive is because they require perfect pitching and perfect defense and that is what we did,” Tal Swails said. “As good as Tucker was on the mound, the defense behind him was equally as impressive.
“Jai Penn, Gavin Fain, and Stuart Callahan, all 3 made excellent plays in the outfield,” Tal Swails said. “Jackson Callahan, Noah Jessup, Broc Taylor, and Hunter Pendleton all made plays in the infield and Martin Sawyers called a perfect game from behind the plate.”
According to “several folks who have followed PC baseball since the beginning of the school in 1970/71, Friday night’s perfect game was the first in the history of the school,” Tal Swails said. “Over that 50-plus year span, several players/teams had been close and several have thrown no-hitters, Tucker is included in that group as he threw a no-hitter last season.”
The PCHS team is now 11-2 on the season.
