Semoball

Late barrage lifts Sikeston to a 13-4 win over New Madrid County Central

Sikeston sophomore Trace Sullivan fist-bumps assistant coach Josh Hopkins during a baseball game against New Madrid County Central, Monday, April 5, 2021, at Eagle Park, in New Madrid, Mo.
Alex Wallner/Standard Democrat

NEW MADRID, Mo. — Returning to the field against a familiar rival is what the Sikeston baseball team desperately needed.

After a 10-game gauntlet against the likes of DeSmet and Francis Howell, among others, the Bulldogs found themselves staring at a 3-7 record.

That all changed on Monday night against SEMO Conference-foe New Madrid County Central (0-5), as Sikeston (4-7) scored eight runs over the final two innings en route to a 13-4 drubbing of the Eagles at Eagle Park in New Madrid.

“We’ve played some really good competition going from the Four Rivers Tournament to the Midwest Classic,” Sikeston head coach Brett Kolons said. “We’ve played some of the top teams in the state, so it was good to get back home to Southeast Missouri."

Taking charge early, the Bulldogs jumped out to a 2-0 lead after the first inning and a 5-0 advantage after the second.

In the first, Sikeston scored both of its runs with two outs.

Sophomore Trace Sullivan knocked in senior Trey Drake on a single, while Sullivan scored — two batters later — after the NMCC center fielder dropped what would have been the third out.

Then, following a bottom half of the first, which saw senior backstop Nolan Self nab NMCC senior Landon McDaniel trying to steal third, the Bulldogs responded with a three-spot in the second.

Senior Tyler Gilmer led off the side with a walk, while fellow senior Justin Marks reached base after an error on the Eagles’ hurler.

With a runner in scoring position, junior leadoff man Dylan Thornbrough made the most of an opportunity to build a bigger cushion.

Thornbrough dropped down a bunt to score Gilmer — who advanced to third on defensive indifference — to make it 3-0, while sophomore Noah Pruitt drove in a pair on a single to equal the 5-0 total.

Even though Sikeston never trailed in this game, NMCC did manage to make it interesting in the bottom of the fourth.

The Eagles scored four runs in the frame to make it a one-run game.

“I felt like if we could get the bat on the baseball and put some balls in play, that good things would happen,” NMCC head coach Joseph McClarty said. “It did, and we were able to string together a couple of hits there; they kicked it around a little bit, and it got us back in the game. We couldn’t get anything else going after that.”

Junior Matt Riley led off the rally with a single, while senior John Michael Stanley was hit by a pitch to put runners on first and second.

Returning to the field against a familiar rival is what the Sikeston baseball team desperately needed.

After a 10-game gauntlet against the likes of DeSmet and Francis Howell, among others, the Bulldogs found themselves staring at a 3-7 record.

That all changed on Monday night against SEMO Conference-foe New Madrid County Central (0-5), as Sikeston (4-7) scored eight runs over the final two innings en route to a 13-4 drubbing of the Eagles at Eagle Park in New Madrid.

“We’ve played some really good competition going from the Four Rivers Tournament to the Midwest Classic,” Sikeston head coach Brett Kolons said. “We’ve played some of the top teams in the state, so it was good to get back home to Southeast Missouri."

Taking charge early, the Bulldogs jumped out to a 2-0 lead after the first inning and a 5-0 advantage after the second.

In the first, Sikeston scored both of its runs with two outs.

Sophomore Trace Sullivan knocked in senior Trey Drake on a single, while Sullivan scored — two batters later — after the NMCC center fielder dropped what would have been the third out.

Then, following a bottom half of the first, which saw senior backstop Nolan Self nab NMCC senior Landon McDaniel trying to steal third, the Bulldogs responded with a three-spot in the second.

Senior Tyler Gilmer led off the side with a walk, while fellow senior Justin Marks reached base after an error on the Eagles’ hurler.

With a runner in scoring position, junior leadoff man Dylan Thornbrough made the most of an opportunity to build a bigger cushion.

Thornbrough dropped down a bunt to score Gilmer — who advanced to third on defensive indifference — to make it 3-0, while sophomore Noah Pruitt drove in a pair on a single to equal the 5-0 total.

Even though Sikeston never trailed in this game, NMCC did manage to make it interesting in the bottom of the fourth.

The Eagles scored four runs in the frame to make it a one-run game.

“I felt like if we could get the bat on the baseball and put some balls in play, that good things would happen,” NMCC head coach Joseph McClarty said. “It did, and we were able to string together a couple of hits there; they kicked it around a little bit, and it got us back in the game. We couldn’t get anything else going after that.”

Junior Matt Riley led off the rally with a single, while senior John Michael Stanley was hit by a pitch to put runners on first and second.

Following that, junior Jace Robinson reached base safely after an error on the Sikeston shortstop to load the bases with nobody out. The Bulldogs finished with four errors in the game.

Capitalizing on the miscue, NMCC scored its first run of the contest after junior Nate Pipkin reached on a fielder’s choice after the Bulldogs’ third baseman elected to step on third for the force-out and give up the run in the process.

That run, though, ultimately led to a big inning for the Eagles that saw them cut the Sikeston lead to one.

Keeping the line moving, sophomore Christopher Grissom singled home Robinson for the second run, while a bases-loaded walk to sophomore Clay Cope cut the Sikeston lead to two.

Following the free pass, McDaniel got into the mix after hitting the ball at the Sikeston shortstop, who misplayed it, for the second error of the frame, which allowed the fourth run to cross.

Suddenly, it was a brand new game, and the home team on the scoreboard had the momentum.

But, nothing came of it, as the Eagles couldn’t capitalize on that momentum.

Over the next two innings, NMCC only had one baserunner reach.

“We were missing a couple of guys up-the-middle today,” McClarty said. “We had a couple of new guys in some places, and that showed throughout the game. They’re young guys, they’re going to learn from this, and I’m very proud of their effort.”

While the Eagles couldn't find a way to scrape across any more runs, Sikeston did.

In the seventh inning, the Bulldogs put up a crooked number, scoring seven in the frame to make the 13-4 final.

The barrage of runs started when junior Tharen Russell drew a walk.

Russell then stole second base, with Stokes at the plate, and later scored on an RBI single by Stokes to make it a 7-4 game.

Back-to-back doubles from Marks and Thornbrough then pushed the lead to six, 10-4, and a two-run homer from Self — his first of the season — put an exclamation point on the victory, even though the Bulldogs added a 13th run shortly after the blast.

“Nolan’s been seeing the ball well all year,” Kolons said. “He’s been hitting missiles, and sometimes those missiles find gloves, but he’s had a good attitude about it and stayed positive.”

Sikeston hosts Poplar Bluff today and Farmington tomorrow. Both games start at 4:30 p.m.

NMCC hosts Malden today, at 4:30 p.m., and play at Jackson, Thursday at 4 p.m.

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WP — Noah Pruitt. LP — Nate Pipkin. 2B — Dylan Thornbrough (S), Justin Marks (S). HR — Nolan Self (S). Multiple hitters: Sikeston — Dylan Thornbrough 3-5, Trace Sullivan 2-5, Justin Marks 2-2.

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