Ava 3, Houston 1
Leading with seven outs to go, the Houston High School baseball team suffered a heartbreaking defeat to Ava on Monday.
The visiting Tigers got the scoring started in the first inning thanks to a single from senior Kolby Sisco that plated junior Aaden Scantlin. Neither team would score again until the fifth inning, when Ava tied the score at 1 with an RBI double.
After allowing a walk in the bottom of the sixth inning, senior Shaun Buck got two quick outs to keep the Tigers hopes alive. But, the wheels quickly came off after he allowed a single, and then a ground ball to Scantlin at shortstop turned into two runs and a runner at second.
“We put together five innings of good baseball but had a crucial error in the sixth inning that gave up the deciding runs,” said Hall.
Ava closed the door quickly in the seventh inning, giving up a one-out baserunner on a single before striking out back-to-back batters to secure a 3-1 South Central Association conference win.
“Shaun Buck pitched another great game,” said HHS head coach Brent Hall. “I’m happy with the way we competed at Ava. This is something we can build on the rest of the season.”
Houston (6-12; 3-4 SCA) takes on Licking on Friday.
Pitching:
- Shaun Buck (Sr.) – 6 IP, 5 H, 3 R (1 ER), BB, 9 K
Offense:
- Aaden Scantlin (Jr.) – 2-for-3, R, 2 SB
- Kolby Sisco (Sr.) – 1-for-3, RBI
Houston 8, Cabool 0
The Diamond Tigers took advantage of a poor day at the plate for the visiting Cabool Bulldogs, only giving up baserunners to errors in an 8-0 victory last Thursday (April 24).
Buck and Scantlin toed the rubber, throwing a combined 7 inning no-hitter, combining for 16 strikeouts.
At the plate, Houston got the scoring started in the first inning on a Buck sacrifice fly that scored senior Caiden Root. In the third inning, Houston added 3 more runs to their total on another sacrifice fly from Buck, an Ethan Carter single and bases loaded walk.
A trio of singles and a balk scattered throughout the next four innings gave Houston 8 runs, and a shutout win.
After the loss, Cabool’s record sat at 0-14, being outscored 185-30 in those games.
Pitching:
- Shaun Buck (Sr.) – 5 IP, 13 K
- Aaden Scantlin (Jr.) – 2 IP, 3 K
Offense:
- Aaden Scantlin (Jr.) – 3-for-4, 2 R
- Shaun Buck (Sr.) – 1-for-2, R, 3 RBI, BB
- Ethan Carter (So.) – 2-for-3, R, 2 RBI, BB