Jackson County Central scored three runs in the bottom of the sixth inning in a non-conference high school varsity baseball game at Jackson’s Wacker Field last Monday (April 8), helping the Huskies claim a narrow 9-7 victory over Heron Lake-Okabena / Fulda.
It was the second game of the season for the Coyotes against a Big South Conference opponent. HL-O / Fulda earned a 7-6 win over Worthington (at Worthington) on April 5 to open the 2019 schedule.
The Coyotes jumped out of the gate with a fast start at Jackson, scoring three times in the top of the first inning. JCC took a 4-3 lead with four runs in the bottom of the second.
HL-O / Fulda tied the contest at 4-4 with a run in the top of the third and held a 6-4 lead after scoring twice in the top of the fourth. The Huskies, however, tied the score at 6-6 with two runs in the bottom of the fourth.
After a scoreless fifth inning and a scoreless top of the sixth, JCC broke things open by plating those three runs in the bottom of the frame. The Coyotes got one run back in the top of the seventh, but came up two runs short in the closely-competitive contest.
“We made some plays in the field and had lots of good at bats to score seven runs,” summed up Coyotes’ head baseball coach Chad Knutson. “We had three innings (first, third and fifth) when we didn’t allow JCC any runs, but we gave up nine in the other three — four in the second, two in the fourth and three in the sixth, which was the difference.”
Freshman Tyson Cotter started on the mound for HL-O / Fulda and induced three ground-ball outs without allowing a runner past first base. Senior Levi Spittle tossed a scoreless third frame and junior Dylan Johanning kept the Huskies off the scoreboard in the fifth. Sophomore Matt Madsen relieved Johanning with one out in the sixth and retired the final two JCC batters on just six pitches.
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