Mules roll past Neelyville in debut

The spring baseball season is here, and the weather held off long enough for a bright and sunny opening day.

The Neelyville Tigers clashed against the Poplar Bluff Mules on Friday at Poplar Bluff High School in an area rematch from last year’s season opener, where the Mules walked away victorious. Though the Tigers were looking forward to welcoming the Mules to their turf for their home opener, weather conditions handed them a little adversity to open the season.

Similar to last year, the Tigers got down early and never recovered. The Mules caught fire from the plate with multiple hits to open their season with a 19-0 win over the Tigers.

Neelyville head coach David Crockett said the Tigers had an opportunity to set the tone early, but minimal mistakes got in the way. He said the Tigers will not hang their heads over this loss. Instead, they will take the matchup as a learning experience that can help them propel throughout the season.

“We had our opportunities but didn’t take them,” Crockett said. “We got to learn from these things and get in the rhythm of understanding routine plays. We talked about being 1% better, and I know it will be a process. We must have a better approach when we step onto the field, be ready to hit the ball from the first pitch, and not wait until we get down. We’re a young team, and we’ll have some growing pains, but when we get together, we will be pretty decent.”

With both teams kicking off the season with a clean slate, snagging a win could set the tone for the next few games.

The Tigers started with a solid defensive strategy and collected two quick outs in the first inning. Despite the slow start, the Mules saw an opening and began to connect from the plate. The Mules jumped out to the lead in the top of the inning after Kade Huffman doubled with a fly ball to center field, scoring three runs, while Myles Johnson followed with a single drive, bringing in one run and scoring another off an error.

The Mules continued to add to their early lead at the top of the second inning after a single ground hit to the left field from Kolby Greenwall. As the Tigers struggled from the mound, the Mules took the opportunity to fill the scoreboard with multiple hits and many steps across home plate. The Mules collected nine points in the second inning and headed to the bottom with a 14-0 lead. At that point, the Mules had an easy path to their first win of the season.

Huffman drove in six runs on two hits to lead Poplar Bluff past Neelyville. He doubled in the first, scoring three, doubled in the fourth, scoring two and walked in the second, scoring one. Huffman said he was excited about the season opener and was happy with how the Mules executed from the plate.

The Mules tallied 11 hits in the game, with Huffman, Dylan Hall, Myles Johnson, and Greenwall each collecting two hits. The Mules stole five bases in the game and was led by Greenwall, who stole two bases. The Mules were laser-focused for most of the game and didn’t commit a single error.

Pitcher Noah Spain earned the win from the mound for the Mules. The starting pitcher surrendered zero hits and zero runs over two innings, striking out three and walking none. Trevor Turner pitched three innings in relief for Neelyvill. The righty allowed six hits and nine runs (five earned) while striking out two and walking five.

Poplar Bluff senior Dylan Bratcher said it was a good team effort and a great way to kick off the year with a win.

“Shoutout to Neelyville for coming out to compete because it’s tough for everyone at the beginning of the season,” Bratcher said. “I’m proud of our team. Everybody hit the ball and got a chance to play. We put up a lot of runs, and I feel like that’s a preview for the whole season to come. Our pitchers did a really good job, and I feel those guys are going to come and get many shutouts. Our defense was awesome, but there are still things to work on. We’ll continue to do the work, but I’m impressed with everybody on the field.”

Both the Mules and Tigers will be in action on Saturday. Neelyville will hit the road to face Risco, while Poplar Bluff heads to Festus for a doubleheader.