The Raiders were no match for Daviess County in an offensive bout on Tuesday, while Apollo also poured in the offense in a win over Webster County.
Daviess County vs Trinity (Whitesville)
The Panthers put on an offensive showcase on Tuesday, slashing the ball left and right with junior Jackson Loucks leading the way on the way to a 16-3 win over Trinity (Whitesville).
While Daviess County took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first because a run was walked in, the Raiders responded swiftly and reclaimed the lead at 2-1 in the bottom of the second thanks to a fielder’s choice and a balk. However, the Panthers offense caught fire in the top of the third.
Junior Cason Troutman opened up the scoring with an RBI double to knot things up at 2-2, but a hit by pitch with the bases loaded and two outs gave Daviess County a 3-2 lead. Senior Cameron Lewis followed with an RBI single and senior Mason Boswell followed with a two-run single to make it a 6-2 game going into the bottom of the third.
The Panthers didn’t let up offensively either, scoring one in the fourth, two in the fifth, three in the sixth and four in the seventh to build their lead to 16-3 going into the bottom of the seventh. It was there that sophomore Carter Nichols closed out his six innings of relief and closed the door on a 16-3 win.
Nichols allowed just one earned run on fourth hits, walking three and striking out one out of the bullpen. Loucks led the way offensively with four RBIs, Boswell and juniors Ethan Ahart and Decker Renfrow got two each and Troutman, junior Layton Huskisson, senior Owen Payne, Lewis and senior Brock Brubaker all chipped in one each.
Junior Nathan Hernandez didn’t have his best stuff in the start for Trinity, allowing nine runs—six earned—on eight hits, four walks and three strikeouts in 4 ⅔ innings on the mound. Offensively it was freshman Hayden Aull who led the way, tallying two RBIs on the day.
The Panthers improve to 21-8 overall to end the regular season, as they are set to take on Apollo in the first round of the 9th District Tournament at 7 p.m. on Saturday.
The Raiders on the other hand fall to 6-17 overall and will look to bounce back on Wednesday when they host the Owensboro Knights at 6 p.m.
Apollo vs Webster County
The Eagles offense was clicking on all cylinders Tuesday night, getting a number of players involved to grab a 12-2 win over Webster County.
Apollo got right to work in the bottom of the first, opening up the scoring with an error plating the first run of the game. Back-to-back sac flies from freshman Sam Holder and junior Josh Mayes made it 3-0, before junior Aiden Wells singled to left to take a 4-0 lead into the second.
The Eagles got one more in the bottom of the second, taking a 5-0 lead thanks to a solo home run to left for senior Harrison Bowman. Both teams grabbed two runs each in the fourth, but a five-run bottom of the fifth would be all Apollo needed to earn the short-game 12-2 victory.
The trio of senior Tyler Payne, junior Cayden Crabtree and sophomore Easton Blandford combined to allow just four hits and two unearned runs on Tuesday, while striking out eight in the process.
Offensively Bowman led the way with three RBIs, while Mayes followed with two and senior Dayton Brown, senior Nick Judd, Wells, Holder, Blandford and sophomore Michael Chaney all added one each.
Apollo improves to 19-11 overall with the win and they will look to close out the regular season strong when they host Castle at 5:30 p.m. on Wednesday.
