Farmington stops Jackson in district final

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo. -- Jackson played one of its worst games of the season and Farmington's performance reached a high level.

Taking that into account, it was no surprise that the second-seeded Knights rolled past top-seeded Jackson 8-2 Friday in the championship game of the Class 4 District 1 tournament at Poplar Bluff High School.

Farmington (13-8) advanced to Thursday's sectional round at defending state champion Francis Howell. Jackson finished its first season under coach Rex Crosnoe with a 17-7 record.

"We went 17-7, and last year we were one game under .500, so that's pretty good," Jackson senior Tyler Profilet said. "We would have liked to win one more, but we came up a little short. They played better than us."

The Indians had four errors, which led to three unearned Farmington runs, and also helped the Knights with five walks and three hit batters.

Farmington didn't really need very much help as the Knights banged out 12 hits -- many of them loud -- but the Indians' miscues prevented them from ever mounting a very serious challenge.

"We had some errors, walks, hit batters. We didn't play real well," Crosnoe said. "But take nothing away from Farmington. We knew it would be tough to beat them. They really hit the ball, and they took advantage of our mistakes."

Farmington coach Stan Walden said his team started the season slowly -- including a one-run loss to Jackson early in the campaign -- but has steadily been improving.

"I thought we played well," Walden said. "We hit the ball good and took advantage of some mistakes. Jackson is a good club and we feel fortunate to win."

Aaron Holman led the Knights with three hits, including a double, and two runs batted in. Jake Bender, Kevin King and Marcus Hoehn all added two hits.

Left-hander Derek Wiles was the winning pitcher. In five innings, he allowed four hits and one run, with four strikeouts and four walks. Stuart Sago finished up, allowing two hits and one run over the final two innings.

"I didn't have my best stuff, but I seemed to battle through it, and I got good support behind me," Wiles said. "It's awesome to win district. We feel great."

Six players had one hit apiece for Jackson. Profilet had an RBI double in the bottom of the first inning that tied the contest at 1-1, and Trevor Thompson got an RBI single in the seventh after Farmington had opened up an 8-1 lead.

Tyler Beussink took the loss. He allowed seven hits and four runs (two earned) in five innings, with two strikeouts and four walks. Jackson used three more pitchers.

The teams were tied 1-1 after two innings before Farmington began to pull away. The Knights went ahead 2-1 in the third, then got unearned runs in the fourth and fifth to make it 4-1. RBI hits from Holman and Hoehn in the sixth made it 6-1, and the Knights completed their scoring with a two-run seventh.

Despite the tough day, Crosnoe considered it a successful season. The future looks bright as the Indians return most of their key players, including top pitchers Jason Meystedt and Beussink.

"We have nothing to hang our heads about," Crosnoe said. "And we have a lot coming back."

Farmington 8, Jackson 2

Farmington 101 112 2 -- 8 12 2

Jackson 100 000 1 -- 2 6 4

WP -- Derek Wiles. LP -- Tyler Beussink. 2B -- Aaron Holman (F), Chris Bone (F), Jake Bender (F), Tyler Profilet (J). Multiple hits -- Farmington, Holman 3-5, Bender 2-4, Kevin King 2-3, Marcus Hoehn 2-5. Records -- Farmington 13-8, Jackson 17-7.