Southeast Missouri State recruit went 4-for-4 to end his slump

~ Cape needed 4 1/2 innings to cruise past Jackson in the opener.

The Cape Girardeau Ford & Sons American Legion baseball team got off to a fast start Wednesday night.

So did Matt Hester.

That was good news on both counts for Cape, which routed Jackson 12-2 in a District 14 game stopped after 4 1/2 innings by the 10-run mercy rule.

Jackson bounced back to earn a split of the doubleheader with a 16-5 victory in the non-district nightcap at Capaha Field. That contest also was stopped early by the mercy rule, ending after five innings.

Jackson's Alex Tripp was called out at the plate after getting tagged by Cape catcher Alex Shell during the fourth inning of the first game Wednesday at Capaha Field. (AARON EISENHAUER ~aeisenhauer@semissourian.com)

"It was a good win for us," said Cape coach Dave Meyr following the first game that kept his squad in the running to gain the top seed and a first-round bye for the District 14 tournament.

Cape, 23-11 overall, is 4-1 in district play. Ford & Sons trails 5-1 Scott County by a half game.

Scott County handed Ford & Sons its only district loss, but the teams meet in a rematch Wednesday in Cape Girardeau.

"We're playing well, but we've got three tough district games left," said Meyr, whose squad visits Dunklin County on Friday and Sikeston on Tuesday.

Getting Hester back on track made Wednesday's district win even sweeter.

Cape shortstop Blake Slattery chased down a high bouncing ground ball during the first inning of the first game.

Hester, Cape's center fielder who is headed to Southeast Missouri State to play baseball, had been in a recent hitting slump.

He broke out of it by going 4-for-4, including a double and single during a seven-run first inning that broke things open early.

"It was good to see Matt start hitting the ball like he had been earlier," Meyr said. "I think he was just pressing."

Hester concurred.

"It was more mental than anything. You can't get a hit and you start pressing," he said. "But tonight I saw the ball really well. It feels good."

After diving after a throw, Jackson first baseman Daniel Smith stretched to reach the bag as Cape's Garrettt Stevens arrived safely during the fourth inning of the first game Wednesday.

Brad LaBruyere and Alex Shell both had two of Cape's 11 hits.

Mark Himmelberg was the winning pitcher. He went the five-inning distance, allowing seven hits and two walks while striking out three.

Jackson had three of its hits in the second inning, when the visitors scored both their runs.

"Except for that second inning, Mark threw really good," Meyr said.

The way Cape has swung the bats recently, Himmelberg had plenty of cushion to work with.

"We've been hitting the ball really well lately," Meyr said. "If we keep getting good pitching, we'll be OK."

Jackson, which is 16-22 overall and 0-6 in the district, has made a recent habit of giving up big innings and falling behind early.

That trend continued Wednesday as Cape used a seven-run first and five-run second to account for all its scoring.

"It's tough when you get down early like that," Jackson coach Mark Lewis said. "We have to shut the big innings off, but we haven't been able to do it.

"Cape hit the baseball and we didn't help ourselves throwing the ball around."

Jackson made five errors, which led to three unearned runs.

Jackson threatened to go ahead in the opening frame as the first two batters reached, but Himmelberg retired the next three hitters.

Cape then exploded for seven runs on six hits, including a leadoff double by Hester. LaBruyere added a two-run single and circled the bases when the ball got past the center fielder for an error.

Jackson had three errors in the inning as only four of the runs were earned.

"It was good to get an early lead," Meyr said.

Jake Hime and Alex Tripp both had two hits for Jackson. Hime and Levi Petzoldt had RBI doubles in the second inning.

Nick D'Amico pitched all four innings and took the loss.

The second game was no doubt much more to Lewis' liking as this time Jackson put the hurt on the opposition.

Jackson banged out 13 hits, led by Hime with three. Tripp, Ryan Cheney and Daniel Smith all added two hits. Cheney drove in three runs. Kyle Birk was the winning pitcher, allowing seven hits and three earned runs.

Joe Uhls had two hits for Cape. Steven Houseman took the loss.