Undefeated Scott City cruises to 12-4 win over East Prairie

Scott City’s hot start to the season continues with a 12-4 victory over East Prairie on Thursday at Scott City.

Seven Rams knocked in a base hit and an equal amount drove in at least one run. Luke Umfleet went 2-for-3 with a double and two RBIs. The junior first baseman leads the Rams (6-0) in hits (8) and RBIs (7), as well as batting .571 with an OPS of 1.361 so far this season.

“He’s such a solid contact hitter," Scott City head coach Skylar Cobb said. "He battles, he puts the ball in play and he's always getting big hits for us. So that's somebody we rely on and we're glad to have him there in the middle of our lineup because he's the only lefty we got. We kind of put him right in the middle and he's been big for us this year.”

Kobe Watson also went 2-for-4 with a double and two RBIs. The towering shortstop has proven to be more advanced than his grade suggests.

“He’s played a lot of high-quality ball in his life already," Cobb said, "Yeah, he's a sophomore, but he's mature beyond his years, especially on the baseball field. His baseball IQ is through the roof, and he's a guy that you don't really have to coach a whole lot. He knows what he's doing."

Scott City starting pitcher Lawson Graff was awarded the win. He allowed five hits and four runs over 4.2 innings with nine strikeouts.

"He didn't have his A-game, but he had his B-game," Cobb said. "His command was a little shaky at times, but when he did command, he was very effective and the nine Ks show that the stuff was there. He'll only get better and so that's what we're excited about.”

Colin Blaylock closed out the game with two no-hit innings with five strikeouts.

"He's kind of our ‘closer’ this year," Cobb said. "He comes in, he throws hard, his velocity is high and he likes that situation."

Peyton Hodges was on the hill for East Prairie. He lasted 4.2 innings allowing six hits and seven runs while striking out ten for the loss.

"Facing a pitcher like Peyton Hodges, who's one of the better pitchers around, we talked about having a certain approach," Cobb said. "I thought we executed that. One through nine, we were putting the bat on the ball. That was the goal today, is to make contact and put the ball in play and not have high strikeout numbers, and I think we accomplished it."

Scott City will host Delta on Tuesday, April 4, with first pitch slated to start at 4:30 p.m.