Sikeston avenges loss to Jackson

~ Post 114 tagged Jackson with a 14-8 loss

SIKESTON – Needing to overcome an early four-run deficit, Sikeston Post 114 rallied for 12 runs in the final five innings to take down Jackson Post 158 14-8 on Monday.

Sikeston secured the third seed in the upcoming district tournament with the win.

"We haven't given up all year," Sikeston coach Chris Crosby said. "We get down and we battle back. That's just one of the things I ask out of the kids, and all we preach to them about is don't give up, keep playing.

"If we're up big or down big, you keep competing and doing things right, and we were able to do that."

After falling to Jackson 3-1 earlier in the year, Sikeston looked to be headed toward a a similar fate.

Jackson led 6-2 when Sikeston came to bat in the bottom of the fifth inning.

However, Sikeston batted around the order in the inning to take the lead.

Ross Bohannon closed the gap to two runs when he doubled to left-center field to score a pair.

Sikeston loaded the bases with two outs and Jimmy Ash grounded a ball past the shortstop to make it a 6-5.

Leadoff batter Luke Keefer was able to give Sikeston a 7-6 lead when his line drive to left-center field scored runners from second and third.

"We just started stringing some hits together," Keefer said. "Instead of one hit by a guy this inning and one another (inning), we got some in a row."

Drew Harper then capped the inning when sent a three-run shot over the center field wall to put Sikeston ahead 10-6.

"He hit that ball well," Crosby said. "That's a big lift for us, where earlier on in the season we wouldn't get that.

"We might get a pop up or something like that, but he steps up and gives us a huge lift."

Though Jackson continued to battled, scoring a pair of runs over the next two innings, Sikeston's offense continued to pack on the insurance runs.

Bohannon hit a solo home run to right field in the sixth, while Ben Freed scored runners from second and third on a drive to right-center field in the seventh inning.

On the game, Sikeston outhit Jackson 13-8.

Tanner Murphy, Bohannon, Freed, and Paul Fox all contributed two hits to Sikeston cause.

"We played well," Harper said. "We finally scored some runs. I think last time we played Jackson it was 3-1, so we hit the ball a little bit better this time.

"Especially when we got two strikes today we'd just line the ball out."

Alex Bolew led Jackson with a double and a triple, driving in four runs and scoring two. Kendall Fay and Mason Sanders both contributed a pair of singles.

"I liked our at-bats early in the game," Jackson coach Mark Lewis said. "I felt like we got a little bit sloppy defensively and they took advantage of it. That's what a good ball club does.

"We had some walks. We had some errors and they capitalized on it, and we just couldn't get back in the ball game."