Class 5’s top-ranked Willard jumped out to an early lead and used a four-run fourth to take control before adding insurance three times en route to a 9-2 win over Joplin on Thursday at the JHS Athletic Complex.
The Tigers (18-9, 5-4 COC) scored a pair of runs in the first inning before the Eagles cut the lead in half with a run in the third. Willard took a commanding advantage after crossing home four times in the fourth, while scoring a single tally in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings to keep the momentum on its side to an eventual Central Ozark Conference win.
“We’re just trying to find consistency,” Joplin coach Kyle Wolf said. “Showing up to the ballpark everyday with the same mindset, locked in and ready to go. There have been days when we’ve done that and we’re pretty good. There’s been days we haven’t and we’re not very good. We’re just trying to find that consistency to be the same team and play the game the way we are capable of playing. Today, there were some situations where we didn’t, and they’re a good team and they’re going to take advantage of those things.”
The matchup with the Tigers was the final COC contest of the season. The Eagles (15-10) finished with a record of 6-3 in conference play.
“Anytime you can have a winning record in this conference you’ve done some things because it’s just a really good conference,” Wolf said. “That being said, I felt like we left a couple out there that maybe we could have gotten. It needs to tell these guys that we are a good baseball team, but we have to do things consistently.”
ON THE MOUND
Gavin Burk earned the win after allowing two runs, one earned on three hits, five walks and three strikeouts in six innings of work. Evan Gaunt pitched a perfect inning in relief.
Justin McReynolds started and took the loss after allowing four runs, three earned, on five hits, two walks and two strikeouts in 3 1/3 innings. Kirk Chandler allowed two runs on one hit and a walk in 1/3 of an inning, while Josh Harryman allowed three runs, two earned, on three hits, four walks and two strikeouts. Fielding Campbell pitched a perfect 2/3 of an inning in relief.
In total, Joplin allowed nine free passes, with seven walks and two hit batsmen.
“Six out of seven innings, we put the leadoff guy on,” Wolf said of the pitching against Willard. “A lot of them were walks and hit-by-pitches. It’s going to be difficult to win a game when you do that.
“The thing is, we’ve been pretty good on the bump all year. I am not blasting our pitching staff because Josh Harryman has been lights out all year. Kirk threw really well last Saturday. Justin threw really well against Ozark in his last start. So, we’ve been there and done good things. But at the end of the day, in this particular game against those guys, when you walk and hit that many people, they are going to be aggressive and it’s going to change the game.”
GAME ACTION
Willard crossed home twice in the top of the first inning to take the initial lead of the contest. After Blake Hultgren singled to left-center field to lead off the inning and stole second base to get into scoring position. Two batters later, Hultgren scored on a fielding error by Joplin and the lead moved to 2-0 after an RBI double to left by Kade Biellier.
Joplin got onto the scoreboard in the top of the third inning after Bodee Carlson drove home Carson Wampler, who led off the inning with a walk, with an RBI single through the right side to make the score 2-1.
The Tigers took control of the game in the top of the fourth with four runs touching home. The first run scored on a bases-loaded walk from Grant Merryman before Cooper Hampton followed with a sacrifice fly to left field to make the score 4-1. Biellier brought home two runs in the next at-bat with a single to right side to push the lead to 6-1.
“I felt like we just kind of got flat,” Wolf said when asked about his team’s response to the early deficit compared to Tuesday’s game against Carl Junction. “We were just taking the game as the punches came at us, but you have to stand back up and punch back. I don’t think we punched back real well today.”
Joplin added a single tally in the last of the fourth when Ethan Guilford brought home a run with a sacrifice fly to cut the deficit to 6-2.
Willard brought home a run on an infield hit by Kyden McMain to extend the lead back to five runs, 7-2. The Tigers added a run on a sac fly from Biellier in the sixth and the final insurance run scored in the seventh on a Hultgren RBI single to left.
IN THE BOX
Carlson led Joplin with a hit and an RBI at the plate. Campbell and Kohl Cooper each recorded a hit, while Wampler walked twice and scored a run.
Biellier doubled for one of his two hits and finished with a team-high four RBI for Willard. Hultgren had two hits, an RBI and scored a team-high three runs.
UP NEXT
Joplin is at Glendale on Monday before hosting Lamar to wrap the season on Tuesday in the Senior Night game.
