Tigers top Jackson 5-2 to capture district title

~ The district championship was the first for the Tigers since 2000.

HILLSBORO, Mo. -- Two-run lead. Ace on the mound. Game in the bag, right?

Not so fast.

Central ace Brad LaBruyere did pick up the save in support of starter Tyler Propst on Friday in the Class 4 District 1 baseball championship, but not without a few anxious moments.

Central held off Jackson for a 5-2 victory in the third meeting between the rivals that had split a pair of one-run games.

The win gave top-ranked Central (16-10) its first district title since 2000 and a spot in Thursday afternoon's sectional against Francis Howell Central. The game will be played in Cape Girardeau.

The victory also helped ease some of the recent district disappointments for Central.

LaBruyere noted the team hadn't won a district game in his previous three seasons, including last year's loss when six players and coach Steve Williams sat out for the top-seeded team because of a MSHSAA violation of attending a camp during the winter.

"We wanted this so bad," LaBruyere said. "We just wanted to win for the guys who were suspended last year and couldn't play their last senior game."

LaBruyere was one of the suspended players. So was Matt Hester, who reached base three times and scored twice Friday. So was Blake Slattery, the offensive star of the game with three extra base hits and three runs driven in.

Ty Craft and Lance Young were the Central players who graduated from last year.

Central, which was ranked in the preseason state poll, carried last year's disappointment and a less-than-stellar regular season record into the district.

"I know these guys were hungry for that," Williams said. "We played a tougher schedule this year, but this is a credit to their mental toughness. I couldn't be prouder of a bunch of guys."

Propst pitched that district loss last year, throwing a complete game in a 2-1 defeat.

He wasn't needed for all seven innings Thursday, since LaBruyere had three innings left after pitching seven Wednesday and tying the school record for career wins.

Propst, Central's appearances leader this season, allowed just one run in his four innings. He allowed five hits but pitched out of some jams.

After Jackson's first two runners of the game reached, the Indians left two in scoring position without scoring a run. They left two more there in the second inning. They scored a run in the third to cut Central's lead to 3-1 but stranded another runner on second.

"We had our chances early and we left some runners on," Jackson coach Rex Crosnoe said. "Who knows what would have happened, but their pitcher pitched out of them."

Said Williams: "I don't think Tyler had his best stuff but he battled, he made some big pitches when he had to. For us to get out of those jams early, that was really key."

Meanwhile, Central scored two runs in the first inning and another in the second for all the runs it would need.

Hester was hit by a pitch in the first and scored on a hit-and-run double by Slattery. A wild pitch moved Slattery to third and Alex Shell's sacrifice fly scored Slattery. Central had two more hits in the inning but left two runners on.

Central scored a run in the second when Hester had a two-out single and Slattery followed with an RBI double blasted to the gap.

Jackson answered in the third on Rex Meyr's double and Andy Winkleblack's hit.

That's how the score stood until the fifth inning, when LaBruyere entered the game.

The Southeast Missouri State recruit was greeted by a first-pitch home run off the bat of Mizzou recruit Meyr.

Logan Lawson followed with a single and stole second base, and suddenly the Indians were threatening.

"That was pretty nerve-racking," LaBruyere said.

But Winkleblack grounded to LaBruyere and the pitcher caught Lawson too far away from second base. Evan Watkins sliced a flyball into left on a hit-and-run that turned into an inning-ending double play.

LaBruyere recorded the game's only 1-2-3 frame in the sixth, then went 1-2-3 in the seventh after Matt Lang's third hit of the game led off the inning. He struck out Meyr and then snared Lawson's line drive back through the middle for the final out.

Central continued its offensive display throughout the game, scoring a run in the fifth with an error, a hit and two bunts, including a suicide squeeze.

Slattery completed his day with a solo home run in the sixth inning.

"On Wednesday, I couldn't hit worth anything," Slattery said. "I just changed a couple of things and saw the ball a lot better."

Williams said the team spent Thursday working on its offensive approach after a tough day with curves and offspeed pitches in Wednesday's win.

"We worked on hitting the ball the other way, on hitting with two strikes, on staying back on the ball," Williams said. "The kids took what we worked on in practice and made it work today. As a coach, that's really gratifying."

LaBruyere and Garrett Stevens each added two hits, and Central had just three players go down on strikes.

Jackson's most effective pitcher was Caleb Hosey, who allowed only an unearned run in three innings. Starter Caleb Gulliams took the loss.

Jackson also put the ball in play, but Central had no errors.

The Indians finished 17-8.

"You can't hang your head at all," Crosnoe said. "We won a bunch of ballgames in the second half, but it's always tough when you lose this one."

CENTRAL 5, JACKSON 2

Jackson 001 010 0 -- 2 7 1

Central 210 011 X -- 5 10 0

WP -- Tyler Propst. LP -- Caleb Gulliams. S -- Brad LaBruyere. 2B -- Blake Slattery (C) 2, Rex Meyr (J); HR -- Slattery (C), Meyr (J). Multiple hits -- Jackson, Meyr 2-3, Matt Lang 3-3; Central, Slattery 3-4, LaBruyere 2-2, Stevens 2-2. Records -- Jackson 17-8, Central 16-10.