YATES CENTER — Marmaton Valley High’s late-season surge continued unabated Tuesday with a pair of convincing road wins over Yates Center.
Marmaton Valley extended its winning streak to eight with 19-0 and 12-4 wins.
Both teams have a little work to do to wrap up the regular season. Marmaton Valley (12-10), visits Marais des Cygnes Valley on Friday. Yates Center (4-14) will travel to Eureka Thursday and Uniontown Monday.
Marmaton Valley’s late surge has bumped the squad into third place in the Pittsburg-St. Mary’s Colgan Class 2-1A Regional. Yates Center remains in a tie for sixth.
Marmaton Valley took control early in the opener and late in the nightcap.
In Game 1, the visitors held a 4-0 lead after half an inning and didn’t look back. All nine starters scored at least one run as Marmaton Valley racked up 17 hits against Yates Center pitching.
Brendon Newman went 4-for-4 with five RBIS while Ty Lord sprinkled a home run into his three hits. Garrett Morrison also had three hits, including a triple. Daniel Fewins and Dominic Smith had three and two hits, respectively. Brayden Lawson and Kele Michael added singles.
Lord pitched four hitless innings, striking out eight, to pick up the win.
Tristan Ballin, Nolan Lampe and William Stackhouse split the pitching duties for Yates Center. They combined to allow eight hits while striking out five. Yates Center was victimized by eight errors afield, leading to 10 unearned runs.
GAME 2 was decidedly more competitive through the early going before Marmaton Valley pulled away at the end.
Lord scored on a passed ball to start the first inning and Daniel Fewins drove in a run with a single for a quick 2-0 lead.
Yates Center bounced back in the bottom of the first. Stackhouse reached on a leadoff walk before Evan McVey singled. Both came around to score on Kaiden Rutherford’s triple to right field. A Marmaton Valley error allowed Rutherford to score, giving the hosts a 3-2 lead.
Marmaton Valley retook the lead in the top of the second, loading the bases before Lawson doubled in Andie Carr and Lord for a 4-3 lead. Fewins followed with a two-run single.
Evans struck back in the bottom of the second with a two-out double to drive in Keagan Tadlock. But Stackhouse was thrown out trying to score, ending the rally.
Morrison’s leadoff double in the top of the third accounted for Marmaton Valley’s next run when he scored on Newman’s infield single.
