If you like gutsy performances, Tuesday's matchup between Joplin and Hillcrest certainly delivered the goods in a 4-3 Eagles victory.
For starters, Joplin's Tyler McGrew and Hillcrest's Thomas Barrett each posted a complete game on the mound, and both finished north of 100 pitches.
With 12 strikeouts, five hits and two walks, McGrew was simply dominant for Joplin. Mixing a mid-80s fastball in with a decent hook, the senior right-hander was able to command his location and keep the Hornet batters guessing.
"The curve was breaking pretty good today, and my fastball had good velocity," McGrew said. "I was hitting my spots just about every pitch. I didn't throw too many change-ups, but they all worked, and I mainly used a curveball to finish them off."
While Hillcrest's Barrett wasn't able to match McGrew's stat line (3 Ks / 1 BB), his performance was no less remarkable, especially considering he threw seven innings with a cast on his left, non-throwing wrist.
Hillcrest head coach Ryan Schaffitzel was pleased with Barrett's performance, especially after the previous week's injury.
"I felt like [Barrett] threw the ball pretty well tonight," Schaffitzel said. "He wasn't as sharp as he's been, and he's been really good for us this year. He gave up only three earned runs, and that's really all you can ask of him. We just couldn't score runs for him when we needed to."
Both pitchers certainly turned in solid outings; however, the game's feature highlight occurred during a third-inning plate appearance.
With Joplin trailing 2-0, Eagles shortstop Gavin Merriman came up to bat with two outs and the bases loaded. After working his way to a 1-1 count, Merriman took a cringe-worthy foul-ball deflection in the lower abdomen and hit the deck in pain.
While the game was paused for several minutes, Merriman was able to regain his composure and finish the at-bat.
The junior managed to battle on and foul off two more pitches, then ripped a 2 RBI single to right-center to tie the ball game.
"I just came up to bat and was getting a little too big on a couple fastballs that I saw inside," Merriman said. "One just happened to come up and hit me. I hit the ground for a little bit, but I had to get back up and play ball. They asked me if I was all right, and I was just ready to get the bat back in my hands."
Joplin head coach Kirk Harryman wasn't taking any chances during the injury timeout. After carefully evaluating Merriman with the help of an athletic trainer, the 16-year skipper opted to let his shortstop continue.
"That just tells you what type of kid Gavin is," Harryman said. "He's tougher than I am. When I first got up there, I didn't think there was any way in the world he was going to keep playing. I don't know how long he was there trying to gather himself, but he walked around and battled. He's a tough, hard-nosed kid, and I tell you what, what a great at-bat to really get us going offensively."
Joplin struck again in both the fifth and sixth innings to take and stretch the lead.
In the fifth, Jake Young followed a hit-by-pitch trip to first with a stolen base. Two batters later, the junior designated hitter scored on a Zack Gaudette ground ball up the middle.
An inning later, Dillon Johnson drove in Reese Hicks from second with a single up the left side for a 4-2 lead.
In the bottom of the sixth, Hillcrest managed to put runners at the corners; however, a failed stolen base attempt turned back the Hornet rally. Hillcrest attacked again in the seventh on a Tanner Ryan double to center with two outs, but McGrew steadied himself for a game-ending strikeout.
Despite the Hornet loss, Schaffitzel was pleased with his team's effort and hopes the lessons learned will pay off as the long season continues.
"We knew if we put the ball in play, we'd have a really good chance at winning, but we just have to do a better job," Schaffitzel said. "We're going to see pitchers like [McGrew] as the year goes on. If we strike out 12 times, we're not going to win much. If we learn from this, it's a good loss and I'm OK with it. If not, then it's a bad one."
Both teams are back in action on Thursday. Hillcrest (11-5) hosts Glendale, while Joplin (11-6) welcomes Waynesville.
Joplin – 4, Hillcrest – 3
Joplin 0 0 2 0 1 1 0 — 4
Hillcrest 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 — 3
