.jpg)
Thursday, March 23 – Powered by a late offensive surge, the Parry McCluer High School baseball team overcame a 4-1 deficit to earn a 14-4 home win in five innings over Craig County in the Pioneer District opener on Thursday evening in Buena Vista.
The Fighting Blues (3-0) broke away from a 4-4 tie by erupting for eight runs in the fourth inning, and the Blues tacked on two more runs in the fifth to end the game early due to the 10-run mercy rule. PM was playing shorthanded, with several players out sick.
In the top of the first, the Rockets (0-3) took a 2-0 lead by scoring on two PM errors.
The Blues answered back in the bottom of the first when Braedyn Houck scored on a sacrifice fly to left field by Jase Barger, cutting Craig’s lead to 2-1.
Craig responded with two runs in the second to extend its lead to 4-1. Matthew Lucas singled on an infield fly ball to bring home Hayden Reynolds, and Joseph Charette scored on a passed ball.
The Blues got their offense going in the third. After Houck singled, Maison Hamilton brought him home with a single on a hard grounder to right field. Barger then singled on a line drive to left field to drive in Hamilton, and Tyler Wade singled on a line drive to center field to bring in Barger, tying the game at 4-4.
In PM’s monster fourth inning, Tanner Coleman started the scoring by running home on a sacrifice fly by Houck. Evan Cook and Hamilton both scored by stealing home, and Peyton Ramsey doubled on a line drive to center field to bring home Barger. Wade tripled to left field to drive in Ramsey and then scored on a single to left field by Brayden Holdren. Up to bat again, Cook doubled to right field to score Holdren and Coleman, extending the Blues’ lead to 12-4.
In the fifth, Barger scored on an error, and the Blues loaded the bases when Holdren was hit by a pitch. Coleman was then hit by a pitch, bringing home Ramsey for the final run.
The Blues racked up 14 hits against four Craig pitchers. Houck led PM with three hits. Recording two hits each for the Blues were Hamilton, Wade, Coleman and Cook. Drew Duncan led the Rockets with two hits.
Houck pitched all five innings for PM, striking out 10 and allowing five hits, one walk and four unearned runs.
PM committed four errors, while Craig had two.
The Blues will continue district action at Narrows on Tuesday at 5 p.m.
For the full story and photos from Thursday’s game, please see our March 29 newspaper.
