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Close to an upset

Camdenton scores late to pull past Jays in 3-1 win

By Trevor Hahn [email protected]

The eighth-seeded Jefferson City Jays took the top-seeded Camdenton Lakers down to the wire on Monday in the first round of the Class 5 District 5 Tournament, but fell 3-1 to the Lakers to end their season.

The Lakers were only able to muster two baserunners through the first five innings against Jordan Martin on the mound, but they capitalized on a couple of key mistakes in the bottom of the sixth inning to score three runs to take the lead.

“From the minute we knew we had them first round, the belief was there and we knew we had a chance to win, especially with Jordan on the mound,” Jefferson City coach Kyle Lasley said. “It’s just a matter of getting over that hump, trying to claw back and keep fighting. It was a season that we definitely learned a lot from, there was a ton of adversity. Hopefully we can grow through that as we move on from here.”

It was a pitchers’ duel all game between

Martin and Thomas Orozco of Camdenton at the American Legion Post 5 Sports Complex.

Connor Earleywine led off the game with a single to left field but was stranded at third base to end the inning after Orozco picked up his first of four strikeouts.

Jackson Basham led off the bottom half with a single, but Martin induced a strikeout-caught stealing double play to erase him before another punch out ended the frame, two of his eight strikeouts on Monday.

“He’s a high-level player and he’s fun to watch out there. He just takes control of the game and he’ll be fun to watch the next couple years,” Lasley said.

Martin worked a 1-2-3 bottom of the second before Jefferson City broke through in the third.

Brody Johns led off with a bloop single into left-center field before Earleywine was intentionally walked in a 3-0 count to set up a force out at three bases.

Tripp Maassen followed by laying down a bunt that allowed Orozco to collect the force out at third base for the first out. Martin drew a walk as the next batter and Eli Martin grounded a fielder’s choice to the shortstop for an RBI to give the Jays a 1-0 lead.

Jordan Martin responded with another 1-2-3 inning on the mound in the bottom of the third before Jefferson City did not capitalize on more runners in the fourth.

Dylan Wallace reached with one out after a wild pitch on a strikeout allowed him to beat the throw to first and Zac Arnold followed with a single into center field.

Seth Brooks lined a 1-2 pitch hard to the right side of the infield that was caught at second base and started an inning-ending double play when Wallace was doubled off second base. The Jays left eight runners on base on the day.

“I was very pleased with the way we got guys on early and got them over, we just had trouble getting them in,” Lasley said. “We left a lot of runners on base. In games like that, against a team like that who has the potential to open it up offensively, you got to put more pressure on them than we did. 1-0 game in districts is probably not going to get you too far. You got to be able to score more than one run.

“Credit to their guy, he got outs when he needed them. Defense made big plays behind him, and it’s kind of one of those things that hopefully one guy gets the big hit and you go from there.”

Camdenton’s explosive offense showed why it is ranked as the No. 3 team in Class 5 in the bottom of the sixth.

Spencer Mellencamp led off the inning with a single and was moved to second base after Martin hit the next batter. Karson Durnin followed by laying down a sacrifice bunt to load the bases with no outs after Martin’s throw to third base was a hair late.

A fly out to right field collected the first out and kept the runners put, but Kamden Durnin took the first pitch of the next at-bat to left field for a game-tying single.

A fielder’s choice at the plate got Martin the second out and he had the next batter, Kaden Durnin, down 0-2 in the count. Martin’s fastball found the middle of the plate and Kaden Durnin deposited the pitch into left-center field for a two-run double to give the Lakers the lead.

“Them getting the first guy on of the inning was huge for them, it gave them a little sense of confidence,” Lasley said. “You can’t blame the kid, he’s a freshman and everybody makes mistakes, he just caught too much of the plate. It happens, it’s a part of the game. It’s about how you respond, so I am not going to take anything away from that kid.”

Earleywine led off the top of the seventh inning with a walk, but a 4-6-3 double play and a groundout to short ended the game and the season for Jefferson City.

Martin finished with a complete game on the mound while allowing three runs (two earned) on five hits and no walks. Arnold and Johns each collected two hits for the Jays (7-25) while Earleywine reached base three times and scored the lone run.

Orozco threw all seven innings for Camdenton (24-8) and allowed five hits and one walk on 95 pitches. The Lakers will face Washington in the semifinal at 3 p.m. Wednesday at the American Legion Post 5 Sports Complex.

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2022-05-17T07:00:00.0000000Z

2022-05-17T07:00:00.0000000Z

https://edition.newstribune.com/article/282037625766833

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