Highland rebounds from game one walk-off to split twin bill against Alton
The evening started off on a down note for the Highland 18U Bulldogs but ended on a very high note.
Highland made the trip north to Gordon Moore Park in Alton on Monday night and squared off with always-tough Post 126.
After just over four hours of baseball, the Bulldogs left Alton with a doubleheader split, losing 2-1 in the opening me and then rebounding for 10-1 victory in the nightcap.
“It was a tough way to lose the first game with the walk-off (run in the seventh) but the second game was a much more awakening game for us as our bats came alive and we were getting good hits,” Highland manager Kyle Schmitt said.
In the opener, Highland right-hander Tyler Werner and Alton right-hander Adam Stilts hooked up in a classic pitchers duel.
Stilts, who also pitchers for Lewis and Clark College, and Werner matched each other pitch for pitch for three scoreless innings to start the evening.
“It was a pitching gem, TW had all his pitches working and Stilts, he looks good every single time we face him so it was a good pitchers duel,” Schmitt said.
In the fourth, the Bulldogs managed to get their lone run of the game off Stilts. Werner ripped a two-out double to right field and came home from third when Chase Wilson reached first on an errant throw from second base to make it 1-0.
Post 126 answered in the bottom of the fourth. Blaine Lancaster led off with a walk and later scored on a sacrifice fly to left field by Gage Booten, evening the count at 1-1.
Werner and Stilts shut the bats down, continuing to get strikeouts and ground outs, and pop-ups for the next two innings.
Werner was particularly impressive in the fifth and sixth innings as he stranded two Alton runners in the fifth and then pitched out of a bases-loaded jam in the sixth to keep Post 126 in check.
Walk-off loss for Bulldogs
In the bottom of the seventh, Werner gave way to Kolby Frey in relief. Frey, who normally starts games, struggled to find his groove in the seventh. Preston Scheper started the frame with a bloop single to center field. Kenny Beachum reached base on a fielder’s choice and went to second on an error.
Owen Macias walked and then with Luke Parmentier up, Frey threw a passed ball on his first pitch to him. Then, on a 3-2 count, Walker had trouble handling another change-up delivery by Frey and the ball skipped to the backstop, allowing Beachum to score the winning run from second.
“I brought Colby in the for the last inning and he’s not really used to closing out a game, he’s a starter,” Schmitt said. “So, a couple of passed balls, and from what my catcher said his change-up was coming out different and he just wasn’t able to fully block the pitch because of it.”
Game two domination by Highland
The Bulldogs turned things around in game two. Highland touched Alton starter Bryce Higginbotham for four runs in the first inning, two in the fifth, and four more runs in the seventh, rolling to a nine-run triumph.
“We have good success against him and always hit him well in the games we have played him,” Schmitt said. “He doesn’t throw too hard, so we just got a lot of base hits and we put up a four-spot in the first inning which was especially nice after losing the first game 2-1 when we didn’t get anything (offensively).”
JD Barnes and Chase Wilson handled the pitching. Barnes went five innings on the mound to get the win, allowing just three hits while walking five, striking out six and surrendering just one run. Wilson pitched the final two innings.
Wilson went 3-for-4 with three runs and three RBI, while Frey was 2-for-3 with one RBI and a walk. Logan Doll had a double and an RBI.
The nightcap rebound was a nice sight for Schmitt to see as Highland improved to 13-4 with the twin bill split.
“We were getting good hits, we were working the count with their pitching, so overall, I think it was a really good game,” he said.
This story was originally published July 7, 2020 at 11:19 AM.