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Day: March 28, 2021

PREP BASEBALL: Neosho competes at Willard tourney

Posted on by Jason Peake

WILLARD, Mo. — The Neosho Wildcats went 0-4 at the Willard Lead-Off Tournament.

In Saturday’s prep baseball action, Lebanon defeated Neosho 12-8 and Glendale topped the Wildcats 5-0.

On Friday, Kickapoo defeated Neosho 10-6 and Willard topped the Wildcats 11-4.

SATURDAY’S RESULTS

Neosho’s game with Lebanon was tied at seven after the top of the fifth inning. But the Yellowjackets plated a run in the bottom half and then added four more in the sixth. 

The Wildcats pushed across a single tally in the seventh, but it wasn’t enough. 

Neosho’s Jose Ortega went 2-for-4 with four RBI, while Brett Slavens drove in two runs on two hits. River Brill, Lane Yost and Ryan Cargile scored two runs apiece.

Carter Baslee was one of five pitchers used by Neosho, and he took the loss. 

Lebanon’s Drew McBride was the winning pitcher.

The Wildcats were limited to three hits in the loss to Glendale.

Slavens, Cargile and Eli Zar had one hit apiece. 

Brill went 4 2/3 innings on the mound and allowed four earned runs on six hits while striking out four. Karson Thomas threw 1 1/3 innings in relief and did not allow a hit or a run. 

Glendale starting pitcher Caimon Kufahl went the distance and struck out 10. 

FRIDAY’S RESULTS

Against Kickapoo, Neosho’s Slavens went 3-for-4 with four RBI, while Yost went 2-for-3. Wyatt Keplar drove in two runs.

Keplar gave up eight runs on five hits in 2 2/3 innings while striking out five. Austin Rodriguez and Thomas also pitched. 

Kickapoo’s Rhett Hendricks, Noah Wilkinson and Luke Quackenbush drove in two runs apiece. Evan Vienhage was the winning pitcher. He scattered four hits and struck out five in four innings. 

The nightcap was tied at 1 when Willard scored eight unanswered runs to take control.

The Wildcats had six hits. Ortega went 2-for-3, while Flynn, Cargile, Keplar and Slavens had one hit apiece.

Brill, Keplar and Slavens had one RBI apiece. 

Carter Fenske went three innings on the mound and allowed four earned runs on five hits while striking out four. Wyatt Shadwick, Carson Williams and Baslee pitched one inning apiece. 

Willard’s Evan Gaunt gave up one run in five innings while striking out four. Blake Hultgren hit a two-run home run. 

Neosho hosts St. Mary’s Colgan at 4:30 on Tuesday. 

 

PREP BASEBALL: Joplin rallies to beat Pryor in 10 innings to close Tiger/Zebra Classic

Posted on by Lucas Davis

PRYOR, Okla. — Joplin rallied from a 6-2 deficit to force extra innings before holding off Pryor in the 10th frame for an 8-7 win on the final day of the Tiger/Zebra Classic.

The Eagles improve to 5-1 on the season.

Kohl Cooper earned the start and no-decision after allowing four runs on seven hits, one walk and four strikeouts in four 1/3 innings. Ethan Guilford earned the win in relief after allowing three runs on six hits, a walk and six strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings.

Brooks Miller was saddled with the loss after allowing four unearned runs on five hits, a walk and four strikeouts in four relief innings.

Joplin scored twice in the top of the fifth on a Fielding Campbell RBI single in the hole to short that scored Kirk Chandler before Bodee Carlson followed with a sac fly to right to plate Kyler Stokes.

Pryor answered with a four-run fifth to make the score 6-2, highlighted by a three-run home run from Si Collins. 

Joplin cut the deficit in half in the sixth after an RBI groundout from Chandler that scored Joe Jasper and an RBI double from Stokes that scored Guilford to make the score 6-4.

The Eagles tied the game in the top of the seventh after a Pryor error on a David Fiscus fly ball to right field allowed Campbell and Carlson to score. Campbell and Carlson each had one-out singles earlier in the frame.

After a scoreless eighth and ninth inning, Guilford singled to left to lead off the top of the 10th for Joplin. Chandler reached base on a fielder’s choice and moved into scoring position after a passed ball. Stokes followed with a single to left to put runners on first and third. The Eagles took the lead on a passed ball that scored Chandler, with Stokes attempting to take third on the play. Pryor’s catcher attempted to throw out Stokes, but the ball got away, allowing him to score an insurance run while extending the lead to 8-6 in the process.

Pryor scored on a single by Blake Raglin in the bottom of the 10th, with Peyton McClelland advancing to third on the play. Guilford struck out Bobby Belew looking to end the threat and the game.

Stokes had three hits, including a double, and scored two runs while driving in one. Campbell, Guilford and Chandler each had two hits. Guilford doubled and scored a run, while Chandler scored twice and drove in one. Campbell scored once and drove in one.

UP NEXT

Joplin hosts St. Mary’s Colgan at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday.

PREP BASEBALL: Carl Junction beats McDonald County and Springfield Central in doubleheader

Posted on by Lucas Davis

CARL JUNCTION, Mo. — Carl Junction bounced back from its first loss of the season in the best way possible—sweeping a three-team doubleheader on Saturday.

The Bulldogs improved to 5-1 after opening the day rallying twice for a win over McDonald County before the offense exploded for 14 runs in the first two innings in a shortened win over Springfield Central.

“This was the first time we really faced adversity coming off a tough loss,” Carl Junction coach Jake Stevenson said. “Today was an opportunity to figure out who we are as a team bouncing back from a tough loss. Guys came out ready to play. … Mac County is a good team. I was pleased with how our guys bounced back in that first game. Against Central, we just got off to a hot start and we got a chance to get some younger guys some varsity opportunities. It was a good day at the yard.”

CARL JUNCTION 5, MCDONALD COUNTY 3

McDonald County struck first in the top of the opening frame when Destyn Dowd doubled to right to score Cole Martin, who singled to lead off the inning.

Carl Junction answered right back in the bottom half of the inning when Dylan Eck singled to left with the bases loaded to plate Drew Beyer, with Noah Southern also scoring on an error by the Mustangs to give the Bulldogs a 2-1 advantage. 

McDonald County took the lead back an inning later when Martin tripled to center with two outs and a runner on first to score Weston Gordon and tie the game at 2-2. Dowd followed with an infield single to short to score Martin, putting the Mustangs on top 3-2.

After a scoreless third inning, Carl Junction’s Brendyn Downs led off the bottom of the fourth with a walk and wound up on third two batters later on a McDonald County error. Cole Stewart brought Downs home shortly after with a sacrifice bunt to tie the game at 3-3.

“It was a really good high school baseball game,” Stevenson said. “It was back and forth, pitchers were throwing strikes. It was just a good high school baseball game. I thought our guys took advantage of the opportunities when we had them, and we didn’t have a lot.”

Carl Junction took the lead for good in the last of the fifth when Beyer walked with one out and Alex Baker brought him home two batters later with a two-out, go-ahead two-run home run to left field to give the Bulldogs 5-3 advantage and all of the momentum en route to the win.

“Alex Baker, like a lot of our kids, is a good kid who you root for,” Stevenson said. “You want good things to happen for good people. He took advantage of the pitch left up in the zone and got his hands through one. It was a huge momentum swing.”

Baker also earned the start and the win after giving up three runs on seven hits, two walks and eight strikeouts over six innings of work. Kyler Perry pitched a scoreless seventh inning in relief without allowing a hit and striking out one.

“I thought Alex threw extremely well today,” Stevenson said. “Mac County took advantage of some good pitches, put the ball in play and had some hits fall their way. Alex stayed the course and was able to get out of innings when he needed to.

“Kyler was facing the top of their order, and they came in having good days. Kyler came in and did a nice job of closing it out.”

Martin took the loss after allowing four runs, three earned, on four hits, six walks and four strikeouts in four 1/3 innings. Ethan Fransico allowed one run on one hit in 2/3 off an inning. Rylee Boyd pitched a clean inning of relief with three strikeouts.

CARL JUNCTION 15, SPRINGFIELD CENTRAL 0

Carl Junction made quick work of Springfield Central with an eight-run first inning followed by a six-run second inning before ending the game in the bottom of the third with a single tally and one out recorded. The Bulldogs totaled nine hits and 11 walks in the win.

“We did a nice job offensively,” Stevenson said. “They gave us some opportunities that we took advantage of—things on the base paths and things like that. Another thing, we had the chance to put the younger guys in and they picked up right where the older guys left off.”

Hunter Cantrell backed up the offensive output with an equally good pitching performance, throwing a three-inning no-hitter without allowing a walk and striking out two.

“The offense did a good job but I want to give a shout out to Hunter Cantrell,” Stevenson said of his junior hurler. “He did a nice job in those three innings not giving up any hits or any walks. He does a good job of throwing strikes, and throwing two pitches for strikes.”

Noah Southern hit a first-inning two-run home run to finish with two RBI and a run scored. Cantrell and Kyler Perry led Carl Junction with two hits apiece. One of Perry’s hits was a double, and he scored a game-high three runs and drove in one. Cantrell finished with an RBI and a run scored. Drew Beyer also had two RBI to go along with one hit and a run scored. Shane Diskin and Logan Eck added doubles and both scored once, with Diskin driving in one. Jaxson Mackney had one hit, one walk, one run scored and one RBI.

UP NEXT

Carl Junction hits the road for a matchup at Aurora, with first pitch scheduled for 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday.

PREP BASEBALL: Arr’s stellar outing leads Carthage to win over Ava; Tigers earn first win for new head coach

Posted on by Jason Peake

Kaden Arr nearly went the distance.

But the Carthage junior right-hander got into a late-game jam before reaching his pitch count, forcing an exit.

Nevertheless, Arr’s stellar outing on the mound led Carthage to a 4-3 win over Ava on Saturday in prep baseball action at Joe Becker Stadium. 

Arr was solid for 6 2/3 innings, scattering three hits and striking out seven while leading his team to its first victory of the 2021 campaign. 

“Kaden Arr…what a start by him,” Tigers coach Luke Bordewick said. “That was 6 2/3 of really excellent pitching. He led us to a victory for sure. He was electric. His curveball was really good. I know he worked on it a lot during the offseason. He threw it early and often. It kept hitters off-balance and that was really nice for us.” 

The game was scoreless in the bottom of the third when the Tigers manufactured a pair of runs — and they did it without recording a hit.

Caden Kabance walked and later scored from third on a double steal attempt. The throw home got away from Ava catcher Reece Adams, allowing Kaden Kralicek to take third. Kralicek charged home a few pitches later on a wild pitch for a 2-0 advantage.

“We preach being aggressive on the basepaths,” Bordewick said. “That’s what we want to do. We’ve got a lot of team speed, so we want to use it.” 

Ava stranded the bases loaded in the fourth, as Arr worked out of trouble by striking out two straight batters before inducing an inning-ending fly ball off the bat of Creighton Regennitter. 

“That was huge,” Bordewick said. “Baseball’s a game of momentum. That was a huge momentum swing for us.”

The Tigers added a single tally in the fourth.

Grant Collier singled up the middle in what was his team’s first hit of the game. Collier stole second and Clay Kinder’s sac bunt moved him to third. Collier scored on Rylee Barker’s RBI groundout. 

The Bears stranded two in the sixth, as Arr fanned Bryce Dodson to get out of a jam.

Carthage added a key insurance run in the bottom of the sixth. 

Kralicek singled to center, took second on Max Templeman’s sacrifice, stole third and later scored on an error. 

Arr came back out for the seventh with a four-run lead. 

After retiring the first batter of the inning, Arr walked two before Spencer Skyles reached on an error to load the bases. Next, two runs scored on a Carthage miscue in the field. 

Arr induced a pop-up for the second out of the inning. But that’s when he had to exit after going over 105 pitches. 

Kralicek took over on the mound and Ava’s Zach Miller smacked the first pitch he saw for an RBI single, trimming Carthage’s lead to 4-3. 

But Kralicek struck out Andrew Dalton to secure the win.

The Tigers went 1-1 on the day, falling to Marshfield 6-2 in the opener. 

“The first game didn’t go our way, but in the second game we fixed a lot of things that we needed to work on,” Bordewick said. “It feels good to win one.” 

 

WIN NO. 1 FOR BORDEWICK

It was Bordewick’s first coaching victory as the man in charge of the Tigers (1-3). 

“It’s not about me, it’s about the players,” said Bordewick, who is in his year as the program’s head coach after previously assisting Mike Godfrey. “The players did something… I didn’t do anything. It feels great to win obviously and I just feel great for the kids.” 

 

MARSHFIELD 6, CARTHAGE 2

In Saturday morning’s clash, the Blue Jays plated a run in the first and three in the third to take a 4-0 lead.

The Tigers got a run back in the fourth, as Kanen Vogt reached on a dropped third strike and later scored on an error. 

Marshfield added single tallies in the fifth and sixth innings to take a 6-1 lead.

The Tigers scored once in the bottom of the sixth when Kralicek singled to left and later scored on Templeman’s groundout. The hosts were unable to rally in the seventh. 

Carthage recorded five hits, and Logan Carmickle had three of them. Kinder and Kralicek had one hit apiece.

Mason Utter struck out 10 batters and gave up four earned runs in the loss. 

Jackson Vestal was the winning pitcher. He struck out 12, walked none and scattered five hits. Hayden Curley had three hits for the Blue Jays. 

In the second game of the day, Ava defeated Marshfield 8-6.

 

WHAT’S NEXT?

Carthage is at McDonald County on Monday and at Nevada on Thursday. 

The Tigers will host the annual Bill O’Dell Tournament from April 5-10. 

 

COLLEGE SOFTBALL: Missouri Southern sweeps Pittsburg State

Posted on by Jason Peake

The Missouri Southern softball program swept rival Pittsburg State today inside the Pat Lipira Softball Complex.

Southern (10-10, 3-3 MIAA) won the first game that turned into a pitching duel 1-0. Abby Atkin went the distance limiting Gorilla (8-16, 4-4 MIAA) batters to four hits. Both teams threatened to score before Makaila Leonhart hit a two-out RBI double scoring Lynnlee Parrott in the sixth inning.

Pittsburg State (8-16, 4-4 MIAA) hit a double to open up the seventh inning, but the runner was out from a relay from right field to second base and tagged out at third base. Atkin sealed the game off with a strikeout her third of the game. Atkin picked up her fifth win of the season.

Yazmin Vargas, Leonhart, Leighton Withers, and L. Parrott had a hit in the game.

Pittsburg State’s Kaylee Burns went a full seven innings giving up four hits and one earned runs in the contest. Burns was credited with the loss moving her season record to 4-6.

Game two saw the Lions get on the board in the first and second off a Withers’ single scoring Josie Tofpi before Vargas doubled home Adrianna Young. Pittsburg State notched a run in the fourth and the Lions responded by scoring two. Kara Amos scored on a passed ball and a Tori Frazier sac bunt scored Young as the Lions led 4-1.

Withers tripled in the fifth scoring Leonhart and a Frazier single followed by an error by the catcher scored Young to seal the 6-1 win.

Withers went 2-of-3 with two RBIs, Tori Frazier also had two RBIs, Young went 2-of-2 scoring three times while stealing two bases, Vargas finished 2-of-4 and stole a base. Amos was in the circle and went the distance striking out three Gorillas while picking up its fourth win of the season.

Riverton product Taylor Compton went three innings for PSU and was credited with the loss, moving her season record to 2-3.

Up next for the Lions is a road non-conference showdown with William Jewell in Liberty, Mo. Tuesday March 30th. First pitch is set for 12 pm and game two tentatively at 2 pm.

COLLEGE BASEBALL: Missouri Southern sweeps Fort Hays State

Posted on by Jason Peake

HAYS, Kan. – The Missouri Southern baseball team finished up the sweep as the Lions won both ends of a double-header against Fort Hays State, taking game one 16-6 and game two 18-17.

Southern (18-3, 12-3 MIAA) saw a lot of offense in the two games today, scoring 16 runs in the opener and 18 in the nightcap.

Will Bausinger got the in game one as he went five innings, striking out eight and allowing just two runs to move to 5-1 on the season. Corey Cowan, Scott Duensing, Jeremiah Kennedy and Blake McPhee threw an inning each in relief.

The Lions had six home runs in the opener as Jordan Fitzpatrick hit a pair. Henry Kusiak, Brad Willis, Matt Miller and Joe Kinder had a home run each. Troy Gagan had a pair of doubles, while Willis and Kinder had a double each. Kinder drove in five runs in the game as Miller, Gagan and Fitzpatrick scored three runs each.

Southern scored wo runs in the first and five in the fourth to lead 7-0 after four. The Tigers (2-17, 2-13 MIAA) got a pair of runs in the fifth, but the Lions scored four runs in the seventh, a single run in the eighth and four more in the ninth. FHSU had four runs over the final three innings, but could not make a dent in the Southern lead.

Game two was a test to see who would score last. Both teams had five home runs each in the game as Kinder hit two more. Gagan, Tommy Stevenson and Miller had a home run each.

Stevenson had a pair of doubles as he set a new MSSU record and tied the MIAA mark with six hits in the game, going 6-for-7 with three runs scored and six RBIs. Kinder had four hits, four runs scored and three RBIs, while Gagan went 5-for-6 with four runs scored and two driven in. Dexter Swims, Clay Milas and Miller had two RBIs each.

Both teams scored early and often as the game was 12-11, Lions after three innings. The Lions scored a run in the fourth to go up 13-11, but Hays answered with four runs in the fifth to go up 15-13.

Southern tied the score with a pair of runs in the sixth, but the Tigers scored two of their own to go up 17-15 after six. The Lions capped the scoring with three runs in the seventh on a home run from Kinder, and RBI single from Stevenson and then Stevenson scored on a wild pitch what proved to be the game-winner.

Chase Beiter started and went went two innings, while Cole Woods, Cowan, Cale McAlister, Ryan Paschal, threw in relief before Duensing settled in for the win. Duensing went three innings and struck out three to move to 2-0 on the year. Logan VanWey came in to close out the game for his first work of the year, striking out a batter and throwing just nine pitches in the ninth.

The Lions will be back at it next weekend as Southern plays host to fifth-ranked Central Missouri. The top-ten matchup will consist of a single game on Friday and a double-header on Saturday.

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