For the Daily Reporter
NEW PALESTINE — A seven-run game usually leaves one team delighted and the other dejected. However, in the first game of Monday night’s delayed doubleheader between New Palestine and Mt. Vernon, a 10-3 Dragons victory, left both schools on an even keel heading into their second game.
“We had some timely hitting and great defense,” New Palestine coach Shawn Lyons said between games. “That’s a pretty good recipe for winning.”
After a scoreless first inning, the Dragons put two men on board to lead off the second, and shortstop Grant Hickman belted a two-run double to give the Dragons the lead. Hickman would come in to score a few outs later on a sacrifice fly to push the lead to three.
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The Marauders scratched back one run in the top of the third inning with a two-out rally against Dragons ace Jack Walker. Walker had faced the minimum amount of batters to that point when Marauders left fielder Austin Sumner laced a double to the left-center gap and would score on two passed balls.
Walker would allow only one more run. With five innings pitched, five strikeouts, and five hits allowed, Walker picked up his second conference victory in a row. He did issue the passed balls and four walks, however.
“Jack is heading in the right direction,” Lyons said. “Sometimes when you tell a kid to ‘throw strikes’ or ‘make free throws’ it gets in their head too much. Jack knows what he’s doing. He just needs to be a bit more aggressive.”
The Marauders looked like they may make a game of it in the fifth inning when they loaded the bases with one out. Walker departed and Hunter Dobbins strode to the plate. He hit the ball well, but directly at Dragons third baseman Jacob Bain, who started a 5-4-3 double play to end the inning.
“I told the guys I’m not disappointed with how that game played out,” Marauders coach Ryan Carr said. “A few plays, Hunter’s double play being the key one, go a few inches one way or the other and it’s an entirely different contest.”
For the Marauders, allowing multiple runs in multiple innings is something they need to address, according to Carr.
“We look great when we’re mashing the ball around the park,” Carr stated. “But we need some of our pitching to step up… I’m hoping Will (Nelson) will be able to do that for us in the second game.”
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Game 1
New Palestine 10, Mt. Vernon 3
MV (5-4, 3-2 HHC);001;011;0;-;;6;2
NP (6-5, 4-1 HHC);032;320;x;-;10;7;1
WP: Jack Walker (2-1). LP: Eli Clotfelter (1-1).
2B: E. Roudebush, G. Hickman, J. Walker, N. Mack (NP); A. Sumner (MV).
Notable: Grant Hickman & Noah Mack, 2 RBI.
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The second game of Monday’s Hoosier Heritage Conference doubleheader between county rivals New Palestine and Mt. Vernon ended too late for today’s newspaper.
The Dragons picked up the win and the doubleheader sweep, topping their rivals, 5-3.
Zach Neligh pitched four innings and struck out seven for the Dragons, while Grant Hickman pitched three innings and struck out six. They combined to hold the Marauders to five total hits.
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