In the season’s first two South Central Association conference games, the Houston High School baseball team spanked Liberty 11-1 last Thursday and fell 6-2 to Salem on Monday, with both contests played at Tiger Field.
The Tigers needed only 5 innings to get the job done against Liberty, scoring in all but 1 inning of the run-rule-shortened contest. Houston got on the board with a run in the bottom of the first frame, adding 4 more in both the second and fourth and then invoking the run rule with a pair in the fifth.
The Tigers compiled 9 hits in the victory and were gifted 8 more baserunners on walks.
HHS junior Shaun Buck (playing third base in the game) had a huge day with the bat, going 3-for-3 with a walk, a double, 5 RBIs and a run scored. He also stole 3 bases. Senior Stone Jackson (at shortstop) also had 3 hits, going 3-for-4 with a double, 3 RBIs and 3 runs.
Senior Wyatt Hughes was dominant on the mound for Houston, working all 5 innings while allowing 4 hits (all singles), striking out 8 and walking only 1. Hughes also got on base 3 times with walks and scored each time.
Senior Aiden Kelly (at catcher) also scored 3 runs for the Tigers, going 1-for-2 at the plate with 2 walks.
In Monday’s matchup against Salem’s Tigers, the host Tigers took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning when Jackson and Hughes singled and senior Gage Yardley drove in Jackson with a base hit.
Neither team scored again until the bottom of the fifth, when Houston added a run when Jackson ripped a single to left field and Kelly came home from second base.
But Salem rallied for 4 runs in the top of the sixth inning. After loading the bases with no outs (with help from a crucial error), the visiting Tigers got on the board with a run on a ground-out and then went ahead 3-2 when senior first baseman Owen Hamilton drilled a 2-run double to deep center field.
Junior right fielder Kash Howard followed with a sharp single up the middle and the visiting Tigers were up 4-2.
“That error kind of changed everything,” said HHS head coach Brent Hall.
Salem added 2 more runs in the top of the seventh on a 2-run single by senior Kaiden DuBois.
Yardley went 2-for-2 at the plate, with a walk and an RBI, while Hughes and Jackson each had 2 hits.
Hughes was on the mound again and went the distance, allowing 7 hits and 2 earned runs while fanning 11 and walking only 1.
DuBois got the start for Salem and worked 4 2/3 innings, allowing 5 hits while striking out 7 and walking 2. Junior Roy Stevens finished, allowing no runs on 1 hit, striking out 2 and walking 2.
Houston left 6 runners on base and committed 2 errors in the game, while Salem stranded 4 and didn’t have a miscue.
Houston (4-4, 1-1 SCA) hits the road for SCA games Thursday (April 4) at Mountain Grove and Monday at Thayer.
The Tigers will also play in the annual Plato Spring Classic this Saturday, facing Plato at 9 a.m. and Alton at 11 a.m.