Scott County overwhelms Jackson 13-3

~ Simpher picked up the win and Daughhetee had five hits for Post 369.

Jon Simpher pitched 7 2/3 innings, and last-minute insert Caleb Daughhetee went 5-for-5 as Scott County's American Legion team routed District 14 foe Jackson 13-3 on Wednesday at Jackson.

Scott County improved to 2-1 in district play and bounced back from a loss to Dunklin County the previous night.

"That puts us 2-1 in the district and it would be nice to get us first, second or third in the bracket," Scott County coach Tom Dirnberger said.

Daughhetee's offensive explosion led a 17-hit attack for Scott County. Prior the game, Daughhetee was not even in the lineup after being bothered by a bruised heel that limited to a pinch-hitting role Tuesday.

"Last night, he was limping all over the place," Dirnberger said. "He came in and said he wanted to play, and the last second we put him in at DH."

Jacob Essner added three hits. Trenton Moses, Rusty Hendricks and Blake Dirnberger had two hits apiece. Moses, an all-stater for Advance, smashed a two-run home run to left field in the top of the eighth inning.

"We hit the ball well; that was the key," Tom Dirnberger said. "The Moses kid's for real. He can hit the ball."

On the mound, Simpher scattered 10 hits, as he ran out of gas with a 2-0 count and two outs in the bottom of the eighth. Jackson's three runs in the eighth spoiled Simpher's shot at a shutout.

Jackson had two runners on with one out in both the fifth and sixth innings and was unable to capitalize.

"They weren't timely hits with guys on base," Jackson coach Mark Lewis said of his team's 10 hits. "I'll tell you this, the kid that pitched against us did a good job."

Austin Morrison took the hill for Jackson, taking the loss after going six innings. Morrison pitched his way out of a major jam in the first inning, giving up just one run after loading the bases with no outs.

Over the next three innings, Morrison was able to induce a pair of double plays to hold Scott County's offense down.

"I didn't fee we capitalized off of the momentum of that inning," Lewis said.

Scott County finally got to Morrison in the fifth inning. An error, seven hits and a walk led to six Scott County runs. Hendricks had two hits in the inning. He and Andy Stephens had back-to-back infield RBI singles with two outs.

Post 369 committed just one error in the field. Shane Menz made several strong throws from third base, and center fielder Blake Dirnberger gunned down a Jackson runner trying to go from first to third on a single.

"I'm just proud of how the boys fielded it," Tom Dirnberger said. "They fielded the ball well, and they all hit the ball well up and down the lineup."

Brandon Cooper started the bottom of the eighth with a double, and Taylor Busch and Ryan Cheney had RBIs to help Jackson escape a mercy-rule game with three runs in the inning. Jackson trailed 12-0 heading into the bottom of the eighth.

While Jackson avoided its second straight mercy-rule loss in district play, it has been outscored 32-12 in its two district games. The defending district tournament champion is playing with a relatively inexperienced team this season after turning over much of its roster.

"You never know what to expect," Lewis said. "You always expect better. You want to keep the level as high as your expectations. We have to keep battling. It's a long season. I haven't given up on these kids."

Jackson takes on Cape Girardeau at home on Friday in another district game.

"We've got Cape on Friday and Sikeston on Monday," Lewis said. "Both come here so one game at a time right now, we have to focus on that."

Meanwhile, Scott County has scored 21 runs in its last two games as it heads south to the Twin Lakes Classic in Mountain Home, Ark. The tournament is scheduled to go from Thursday through Sunday.

"To head into Mountain Home with a good win like this and everyone having swung the bats well that makes a big difference," Tom Dirnberger said.