Highland 18U baseball pounds Piasa Southwestern

Five days after dropping a 6-3 loss to Alton in the Elsberry-Washington tournament championship game, the Highland Bulldogs 18U club got a much needed reset against a struggling Piasa Southwestern team.

Thanks in large part to a 13-run explosion in the bottom of the third inning, Highland turned an early five-run lead into an 18-0 blowout Friday night at P.I.C. Park in Pierron.

The game was called after three innings due to the mercy rule.

It was a welcome and timely reboot for the Bulldogs (6-3), as Highland skipper Kyle Schmitt watched his hard-hitting lineup bang out 19 hits against Southwestern pitching.

“I thought it was a good day hitting wise. Even though they (Piasa Southwestern) weren’t the best team, we were still putting the ball in play in spots where it would sneak through,” Schmitt said.

Highland started strong, scoring five runs in the first two frames to go up 5-0. In the bottom of the third, the Bulldogs dropped the hammer on Southwestern, scoring 13 runs.

“It was a very explosive third inning where we scored 13 runs on 13 hits and pretty much everyone got a base hit that inning,” Schmitt said. “Overall in the third inning everyone contributed in their own way and that was the biggest takeaway from that inning.”

Infielder Jack Korte came through with the big blow, ripping a bases-loaded triple for a 12-0 lead.

Korte went 2-for-4 with 5 RBI. Landon Oestringer, Carter Wiegman, Logan Doll, and Tyler Robards all had 2 RBI each to help power the Bulldogs attack.

On the mound, Chase Wilson handled business as he rebounded from a tough outing in Washington last Sunday. Wilson threw three shutout innings, allowed just four hits and struck out six hitters.

“I thought it was a great bounce back (for him) because he was on the mound on Sunday and he pitched the last inning against Alton and gave up the bases-clearing double, so I felt this was a good bounce back game for him to get a little bit more confidence back,” Schmitt said.

The Bulldogs return to action at 6 p.m. Monday at P.I.C. Park (weather permitting) and Tuesday will take on Piasa Southwestern in a 8 p.m. contest at P.I.C. Park.

This story was originally published June 21, 2020 at 12:48 AM.