Jackson falls to Sikeston in first round of conference tournament

SIKESTON, Mo. -- Jackson coach Bryan Austin thought Monday's game was very similar to the first time his team faced the Sikeston Bulldogs.

The biggest difference was the weather and who came out on top.

Jackson, who defeated Sikeston earlier this season in its regular season conference tilt 3-2 in 10 innings, dropped its first-round game in the SEMO Conference Baseball Tournament to the Bulldogs 2-1.

The Indians were held to five hits and scored their lone run in the second inning on Sikeston starter Trent Sidwell, who pitched the complete game win.

The Indians (13-11) stayed behind in Sikeston to take on Dexter during a consolation semifinal, where they defeated the Bearcats 13-3 in five innings. That win moved them into the consolation championship against Cape Girardeau Central, a game that has yet to be scheduled.

"The biggest difference, it wasn't freezing cold like it was before, but we knew what we were getting into," Austin said. "It was going to be two really good teams battling each other."

The tight contest took a shift in the fifth inning when Sikeston (12-7) scored the tying and winning runs.

Sam Cox, who shook off recent struggles at the plate, singled to start the frame. Max Ault followed up with a double to put them on second and third. Will Pratt delivered the tying run with another single and Trey Smith belted Sikeston's fourth hit of the inning to give the Bulldogs a 2-1 advantage.

Until that point, Sikeston had just two hits against Jackson starter Gavon Turner, who threw all six innings and gave up two earned runs. He struck out three and walked two.

"I thought he was on and had great stuff," Austin said. "His velocity was good for us. He was locating three pitches, and the best thing about him was after they got a few hits it didn't affect him."

The same could be said about Sidwell.

The senior buckled down after putting Jackson's lone run in scoring position after a lackadaisical throw to first went wide, putting Braedon Dobbs at second in the second inning. Turner, who finished 3 for 3, helped his own cause with a single moments later for a 1-0 advantage.

"Any time you have your own error and you put a guy in scoring position and that's your fault, that's the worst," Sidwell said. "They ended up getting a dinker to go ahead, and that hurts, too. I can live with hard-hit balls, but when they get dinkers -- it's up to me to finish off the pitch."

Jackson's best chance to tie the game came in the sixth inning. Sikeston's second error of the game allowed Justice Crosnoe to reach second with two outs, but Sidwell coaxed a fly ball to get out of the inning.

Sikeston's side-arm pitcher erased another runner in scoring position in the seventh inning to close out the win.

"I thought he threw the baseball really well against us," Austin said. "We didn't really barrel up any hits really well. I thought we had a good approach at the plate and got his pitch count up early and we didn't chase out of the zone. We just couldn't get good contact off of him."

Sikeston's win put them into the tournament semifinals against top-seeded Poplar Bluff just hours later at Capaha Park, where the Mules won 7-3.

Jackson 010 000 0 -- 1 5 0

Sikeston 000 020 -- 2 6 3

WP -- Trent Sidwell. LP -- Gavon Turner. Multiple hitters: (J) Turner 3-3. 2B: (S) Mackenzie Worth, Max Ault.