East Prairie uses small ball and smart pitching to roll over Charleston in district tournament opener

CHARLESTON, Mo. — East Prairie leaned on a savvy, situational approach to topple Charleston 16-1 in the opening round of the MSHSAA Class 3, District 1 Tournament at Hillhouse Park on Monday, May 15.

Rather than relying on brute force, the Eagles (17-12-1) used a combination of smart baserunning, well-executed sacrifices and clutch hitting to generate runs and keep the Bluejays (9-14) on their heels.

“We came out and took care of business,” said East Prairie coach Gary Scott. “We didn’t hit the ball hard but we put it in play and made some good things happen in our favor. It was just our day I guess. It was good to score some runs early and get [our starting pitcher] Peyton Hodges out of the game.”

East Prairie's Noah Johnson (7) takes a swing during a 16-1 win over Charleston at Hillhouse Park in the opening round of the MSHSAA Class 3, District 2 Tournament on Monday, May 15, 2023. (Rod Anderson/Standard-Democrat)

Charleston got off to a strong start after Bennett Logan scored on a sacrifice fly in the top of the first inning, but its momentum was short-lived as East Prairie quickly answered back with two runs in the bottom of the inning.

Those runs came after Peyton Hodges singled to score Noah Johnson and Rayne Jerrigan scored on a ground out.

The Eagles took flight in the bottom of the second and gained a commanding lead after scoring a dozen runs.

Those runs came after Will Jarvis, Tate Henderson, Johnson and Winfield White scored on errors; Johnson doubles to score White and Leven Turner; Johnson scored on a bases-loaded walk; Jerrigan scored after a batter was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded; Turner singled to score Rafe Byassee; White singled to score Ty Wallace; and Johnson doubled to score Maxx Walters and Turner.

“It was key to just get runners on and not strike out,” Scott said. “We wanted to make them play solid defense. We were able to play small ball and move runners around forcing them to make plays.”

East Prairie added two more runs in the bottom of the third inning to inflict the run rule.

Those runs after Henderson singled to score Jarvis and Johnson singled to score Turner.

“Noah Johnson had an outstanding day at the plate going 3-for-3 with five RBIs,” Scott said. “He also scored three runs from his leadoff spot. Leven Turner had another great day at the plate, also going 3-for-3. The bottom part of the order did a great job today setting the table.”

Hodges earned the win after pitching two innings and throwing just 30 pitches. He allowed one earned run on two hits with four strikeouts.

“It was a big positive to be able to Hodges out of the game and not having to waste any pitching,” Scott said.

Owen Knight pitched one scoreless and hitless inning while striking out two and walking two batters.

East Prairie advanced to play top-seeded Kelly (19-8) on Tuesday, May 16 at 1:30 p.m.

Logan took the loss after one inning and allowed eight earned runs on four hits with five walked batters.

Bryant Gunn threw 1.2 innings and allowed four earned runs on seven hits with four strikeouts.

With a strong coaching staff and a young but talented roster, it is only a matter of time before Charleston is back in the mix and competing for championships once again.

“Not how we wanted to finish but it just wasn’t our day,” said Charleston coach Michael Minner. “I’m proud of my guys. We improved over the course of the year and I thank my seniors for putting up with me over their careers and wish them the best. We’ve been blessed to have some great kids put our uniforms on. They are always great representatives of Charleston. I’m always proud to be a Bluejay.”

__EAST PRAIRIE 16, CHARLESTON 1, F/3__

Charleston 100 xxx x — 1 2 6

E. Prairie 2(12)2 xxx x — 16 11 0

W—Peyton Hodges. L—Bennett Logan. 2B—East Prairie: Noah Johnson (2).