The McDonald County 16U baseball team took fifth place at the Grove 16U Baseball tournament by beating the Oklahoma Broncos 17-7 on June 4 at Grove High School.
Jackson Behm picked up the win for McDonald County, allowing seven runs on just six hits over seven innings. Behm, who will be a sophomore at MCHS next year, struck out nine while walking two and hitting four, retired nine out of the last 11 hitters.
McDonald County trailed 4-3 before scoring seven runs in the top of the third inning. Singles by Nolan Baisch, Cory Creason and Tae-Shaun Alik and a pair of errors got the inning started before Cade Smith one-hopped the right-field fence for a triple to highlight the inning.
Sampson Boles drove in a run in McDonald County's three-run second inning with a single, which included an error and a wild pitch for the other two McDonald County runs.
The Broncos scored two runs in the third and one in the fourth to cut the McDonald County lead to 10-7, but McDonald County scored three runs in the fifth, one in the sixth and three more in the seventh. All three runs in the fifth and the one in the sixth came on walks and Bronco errors. Behm and Cade Brock keyed the McDonald County three-run seventh with singles.
Smith and Alik finished with two hits each while Behm, Baisch and Creason had one each.
McDonald County lost both pool games on June 3 before winning the fifth-place game. Grove claimed a 9-3 win in the opener with Smith starting and getting the loss before being relieved by Ethan Francisco after five and a third innings.
Koby McAlister had two hits and Baisch had one to lead the offense.
In its second game, 212 Baseball defeated McDonald County 13-2 with McAlister taking the loss. Kammeron Hopkins' double was the offensive highlight for McDonald County.
McDonald County falls to 2-4 for the season entering its June 6 doubleheader against Carl Junction. McDonald County was at Seneca on June 7 before entering the Monett tournament set for June 9-11.
Sports on 06/08/2017