The Marmaton Valley Wildcats extended their win streak to four games after beating the Northeast Vikings 11-9 and 15-14 Monday night.
In a demonstration of their composure, the Wildcats showed they can play with a lead and from behind in the Three Rivers Conference contest.
After trailing by two runs following the first inning, junior outfielder Tyler Lord put the Wildcats on the scoreboard with an RBI double. Junior first baseman Todd Stevenson picked up two of his team-leading three RBIs on a single to give Marmaton Valley a 3-2 lead. A two-RBI double by senior shortstop Dominic Smith, an RBI single from sophomore designated hitter Andersen Carr and multiple runners scoring on a forced error from a Stevenson single gave the Wildcats a comfortable 8-2 lead.
Northeast rallied to pull within a pair of runs in the sixth inning, but Smith tallied a pair of strikeouts in relief to seal the victory. Smith’s seven-strikeout performance was only second to that of freshman starter Thomas Allee, who tallied nine strikeouts over four innings.
Unlike the opener, the Wildcats played from behind for much of the finale with Northeast jumping out to a 9-2 lead by the end of the third inning.
Undeterred, Marmaton Valley rallied back to pull within a pair of runs after Smith capitalized on a bases-loaded, two-RBI double, then an RBI single by junior outfielder Brevyn Campbell made the score 11-9. Northeast’s woes on the mound continued as Wildcat batters faced a myriad of bases-loaded opportunities.
Marmaton Valley eventually won on a walk-off error after Smith attempted to steal home. Despite being caught, the ball jarred loose in the scramble and freshman first baseman Kaden McVey scored in the calamity to seal the victory. Campbell ended the finale with a team-leading two RBIs. Junior pitcher Garrett Morrison had a team-leading five strikeouts while coming on in relief of Lord, who had four.
With the win, Marmaton Valley evens its record to 4-4. They return to the mound Thursday for a road game against Jayhawk-Linn.
