Portageville powers through emotions to win on Senior Day

PORTAGEVILLE, Mo. — On a day filled with mixed emotions, Portageville rallied together to secure a victory over Ellington on Senior Day. 

A late surge on offense and some gritty performances on the mound helped the Bulldogs (29-2) capture a hard-fought 10-5 win over the Whippets (12-13) at Meatte Park on Saturday, May 5. 

“Senior Day can be a daunting task for a high school baseball team due to the emotions involved,” said Portageville coach Tyler Trover. “The seniors know it’s their last tie to high school before graduating, and they’re playing with buddies who they’ve worked so hard with and built good chemistry. It’s hard on everyone because they’re all realizing that this the beginning of that last stretch they’ll play together, and that can take away some focus and execution.”

Portageville's Thomas Frakes (11) throws a pitch�during a 10-5 win over Ellington at Meatte Park on Saturday, May 6, 2023.�Dennis Marshall/Standard-Democrat

Before their Senior Day game, each Portageville senior received a special gift from Trover and the coaching staff. 

Trover explained, “When they receive that bat, it becomes real for those kids. It hits them that this is it. They’ve put so much into this game, and it’s almost over. It can be a little emotional.”

Portageville had a tough start to the game as Ellington quickly took a 1-0 lead with a solo home run from Jake Farmer in the top of the first inning. 

Portageville's Jayquan Bogan (21) slides into third base�during a 10-5 win over Ellington at Meatte Park on Saturday, May 6, 2023.�Dennis Marshall/Standard-Democrat

Despite the early setback, the Bulldogs remained composed and executed a powerful fourth inning, taking a 5-1 lead after Trey Benthal scored on a bases-loaded walk, Thomas Frakes scored on a passed ball, Aaron Dunlap singled to score Carson Bradley and Jayquan Bogan, and Conner Johnson scored on a ground out. 

Ellington narrowed the lead to 5-3 in the top of the fifth inning, but Portageville widened the score to 7-3 in the bottom of the inning after a single by Johnson scored Huston Partin and Bradley scored on a passed ball. 

In the top of the sixth inning, the Whippets managed to respond once again, trimming the lead to 7-5. 

Portageville's Huston Partin (5) scores a run�during a 10-5 win over Ellington at Meatte Park on Saturday, May 6, 2023.�Dennis Marshall/Standard-Democrat

However, the Bulldogs refused to let their opponents gain more ground and answered back in the bottom of the inning when Mason Adams hit a triple to score Beau Hunter-Warren, Benthal singled to score Adams, and Bradley had a single to score Partin. 

“it was nice to see the bats come alive,” Trover said. “We’ve been fighting it the last couple of weeks, kind of like in a full-on team slump, but still finding ways to win games. [Frakes] didn’t have his sharpest outing [on the mound]. So the fact that the bats came alive and supported him when he’s been so good all year long. The bats picked him up and that was neat to see.“

Frakes earned the win after five innings. He allowed five earned runs on seven hits with six strikeouts and two walked batters. 

Adams pitched the final two innings, not allowing any runs on one hit with two strikeouts. 

Aiden Anderson took the loss after five innings and allowed six earned runs on five hits with three strikeouts and eight walks. 

“Hopefully we can continue to take care of business, play our best baseball and give ourselves a chance moving forward,” Trover concluded. 

__PORTAGEVILLE 10, ELLINGTON 5__

E’Ton 100 022 0 — 5 8 2

P’Ville 000 523 x — 10 9 1

W—Thomas Frakes. L—Aiden Anderson. 3B—Portageville: Mason Adams. HR—Ellington: Jake Farmer.