Dirtbags sweep HG with shutouts
HASKELL – The 18U Saline County Dirtbags picked up a doubleheader shutout sweep over Harmony Grove Tuesday in Haskell. The Dirtbags took the first game 3-0 despite getting outhit 5-4, while getting a 10-0 victory in five innings thanks to a 7-run fifth in the second match.
It was Austin Hillis on the mound in the first game propelling the Dirtbags to the win. Hillis gave up just five hits with no walks, striking out nine in a complete seven innings in the 3-0 shutout.
After a scoreless first, the Dirtbags got on the board in the top of the second when Caleb Sollars reached on an error to start the frame and later scored on Ethan Matthews’ sacrifice fly for the 1-0 lead.
Another error in the fourth led to Saline County’s second run. Easton Dinwiddie reached on a oneout Harmony Grove miscue by the shortstop and went to third on Jackson Regan’s two-out single to left to put runners on the corners.
Cole Babcock knocked in Dinwiddie with a single to center for the 2-run advantage.
The Dirtbags scratched another run across in the seventh, with Regan singling with one out, stealing second and third, and scoring on Matthews’ infield RBI single to set the 3-0 final.
Matthews knocked in two runs in his 1-for-3 showing, with Regan 2 for 3 with a run. Babcock went 1 for 3 with an RBI.
It was Karsyn Buchanan in the nightcap leading the way, while the Dirtbag offense blew up late. Buchanan also threw a shutout, giving up three hits and two walks, striking out four in five complete innings.
Saline County pushed a run across in the first when Dinwiddie reached on a twoout walk, stole second and scored on a Sollars single for the early 1-0 lead, but it seemed it may turn into a pitchers’ duel with consecutive scoreless innings after that.
That was not to be as the Dirtbags went up 3-0 in the top of the fourth on Kaleb Deno’s RBI single to center to plate Regan, who was hit by a pitch, and Austin Archer made it a 3-run lead with an RBI single to left scoring Babcock.
After a 1-2-3 inning by Buchanan, the Dirtbags exploded in the fifth for their 7-spot, which included a Dinwiddie RBI single, 2-run triple by Sollars, fielder’s choice RBI by Babcock, another Archer RBI single, and a 2-run Jackson Lindsey single to make it a 10-run game to enforce the sportsmanship rule. Buchanan again set down the side in order in the bottom of the inning to preserve the shutout.
Sollars finished 2 for 3 with three RBIS, Archer was 2 for 2 with two RBIS and Babcock was 2 for 3 with two runs. Lindsey was 1 for 3 with two RBIS, Dinwiddie was 1 for 2 with two runs and RBI, Deno with a hit and RBI, and Grant Cross had a hit as well.