Scott County Senior Legion returns after 4-year absence

~ The squad collected its fourth win Wednesday with a 13-8 victory over East Prairie Senior Babe Ruth

CHAFFEE, Mo. -- The Scott County Senior American Legion baseball team has taken its share of lumps this summer, but that hasn't dampened the enthusiasm of the first-year squad.

And Wednesday night Post 369 was able to administer some lumps, beating the visiting East Prairie Senior Babe Ruth team 13-8 at Harmon Field.

Scott County improved to 4-9, while East Prairie fell to 2-15.

"I feel like we're really starting to work as a team," said winning pitcher Brent Forck, who went all nine innings.

Scott County coach Zach Pobst and assistant Chris Whites wanted to give players in their area a chance to compete on the Senior American Legion level.

They hadn't had that opportunity since 2008, which was the last year Scott County fielded a Senior Legion team.

"It's been four years ... that's long enough," said Pobst, a 2010 Scott City High School graduate who along with Whites started up Scott County's Junior Legion program last year after it had also disbanded following the summer of 2008. "There are enough players around here to play ball in the summer."

Many of the top players who are eligible to for Scott County Senior Legion are instead competing on various area Senior Babe Ruth teams.

But the players who have committed to Post 369 are appreciative for the opportunity.

"We're pretty excited about it," said Zach Carlyle, one of eight players from Scott City High School on Scott County's 11-man roster. "I feel like we're competing pretty good. We're getting along pretty good."

Said Logan Henson, a 2012 Scott City graduate: "We've been struggling, but we've got the talent. We just have to put it together."

Henson played in the Cape Girardeau American Legion program the past few years. He said he enjoyed those times but is glad to be back with many of his former high school teammates.

"I like playing for this team," he said. "I know most of them, and the couple I haven't played with, I've made some new friends."

Scott County, which plays its home games at Chaffee's Harmon Field, scored four seventh-inning runs to break a 5-5 tie in Wednesday's back-and-forth affair.

Forck, a recent Kelly graduate -- he is one of three Scott County players who are out of high school -- made that lead stand up, with the help of four eighth-inning insurance runs.

Forck was thrilled to pitch a nine-inning complete game for the first time. He allowed 11 hits and four earned runs, while striking out nine, walking four and hitting three batters.

"I've done it a few times in practice during school ball but never in a game," Forck said. "By about the fifth inning I knew I could go all the way."

Said Pobst with a smile: "Brent's got a rubber arm."

Post 369, after being held to just seven hits in its last three games combined, collected 11 hits Wednesday.

Scott County also took advantage of 11 walks, seven hit batters and six wild pitches issued by East Prairie hurlers. Ten of the players who either walked or were hit came around to score.

"We hit the ball better than we have been. We've been struggling lately," Pobst said.

Trent Pobst, Scott County's youngest player who will be a sophomore at Scott City in the fall, had three hits. He drove in two runs and scored twice.

Carlyle, who will be a senior at Scott City, had two hits and two RBIs. Jordan Kinder, who will be a senior at Delta, had two hits and scored twice.

"We played good. We hit the ball when we needed to," Trent Pobst said.

Scott County broke a 5-5 tie with its four-run seventh inning that featured just one hit along with three walks and two hit batters.

Trevor Job, a recent Scott City graduate, forced in the go-ahead run when he was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded.

Layne Spies, who will be a senior at Scott City, then delivered one of the game's big blows, a three-run double that put Scott County up 9-5.

It was 9-7 when Scott County tacked on four insurance runs in the eighth inning on four hits. Carlyle and Forck had RBI singles.

Mack Marcum and Karsten Campbell both had two hits for East Prairie.

"It's nice to win again. The guys have been working hard," Zach Pobst said.

Scott County hopes to keep developing and improving leading up to next month's District 14 tournament hosted by Dunklin County.

Pobst knows his squad will be a serious underdog in the five-team event that also features established programs: Jackson -- the defending champion -- Dunklin County, Cape Girardeau and Sikeston.

"There are some really good Legion teams around here, but I think we're progressing pretty good," Pobst said. "We just want to keep getting better."