CARL JUNCTION, Mo. — It’s no secret, the key to winning baseball games is a combination of timely hitting, strong pitching and taking advantage of the other team’s mistakes.
Carl Junction did just that in a 5-0 win over Neosho in Central Ozark Conference action on a windy Tuesday.
“Early in the year, we were pitching pretty well and playing pretty good defense, but we weren’t hitting,” Carl Junction coach Phil Cook said. “We started hitting a couple of weeks ago, and I am really pleased with that, but haven’t been pitching as well and we had some messy play defensively. I told them when they can put a complete game together … you’ll win, and that’s what they did.”
ON THE MOUND
Lucas Vanlanduit, who also doubled at the plate, was nails on the mound for the Bulldogs, earning the win after pitching a complete-game shutout on just two hits, two walks and 11 strikeouts in seven innings.
“He was awesome,” Cook said. “He has had some really good outings this year and not won. … He has been really sharp all year long. Until that last inning, he was in the zone and doing everything we asked. If you can throw a complete-game, seven-inning shutout at this level with only 105 pitches to work with, you’re doing something right. I told him it was a gem.”
Vanlanduit’s only real trouble in the game came in the top of the seventh inning when the Wildcats loaded the bases with one out. However, Vanlanduit escaped the jam after inducing a grounder to third, where Gabe Sitton fielded the ball cleanly moving towards the bag, stepped on third and fired to first for a game-ending 5-3 double play.
“I called a timeout there in the last inning (and went to the mound) to tell everybody two things,” Cook said. “First, I wanted to make sure everybody took a deep breath and made sure we were focusing on just getting the out. Second, I asked them if they knew what happened if [Neosho] hit a grand slam right here? We still have a one-run lead. We just needed to throw strikes and make them hit it. Lucas got the ground ball. Gabe made a great play at third base and made a great throw across the infield.”
Kael Smith took the complete-game loss for Neosho after allowing five runs, three earned, on eight hits, two walks and 11 strikeouts in six innings of work.
BETWEEN THE LINES
After two scoreless innings, Carl Junction took the momentum with a three-run third inning. The Bulldogs opened the scoring with an RBI double from Wyatt McAfee before he ultimately came around to score on a first-and-third pickoff-rundown play for a 2-0 advantage. The final run came home to score on a Neosho error.
“What I am most happy about is we contributed all throughout the lineup,” Cook said of his offense’s day at the plate. “It seemed like every inning—no matter who was coming up—we were putting pressure on them with everybody contributing. That’s what we want.”
Carl Junction added insurance in the fourth with a run coming home on a dropped third strike before scoring a single tally in the sixth inning on a sacrifice fly from Bentley Rowden to extend the lead to 5-0.
“We didn’t come to play today,” Neosho coach Bo Helsel said after the loss. “Wind blowing in … we got beat in all three aspects today[—pitching, fielding and defense]. You can’t win in this conference playing like that.”
AT THE PLATE
McAfee had a double on the way to two hits, an RBI and a run scored, while Brody Pant and Cody Hollingsworth each had a pair of hits for Carl Junction. Pant scored twice and Hollingsworth drove in one. Arlen Wakefield had a hit and scored a run.
Wyatt Shadwick and Austin Rodriguez each had hits for Neosho.
UP NEXT
Carl Junction (7-10, 2-2 COC) is at Branson on Wednesday.
Neosho (12-5, 1-3 COC) is at Willard on Thursday.
