BC squeaks past Macaws twice
Building Champions claimed a pair of one-run wins Monday against the MBC Academy Macaws at Creekside Baseball Complex in Parkville, winning the final at-bat during both ends of a 4-3, 7-6 doubleheader sweep.
During the opener, the Macaws managed to tie the game on SS Ashton Neuman’s (Flagler Palm Coast [Florida]/Benedictine) RBI single in the top of the seventh, which set the stage for BC to walk off with the win when 3B Kysen Howard (Blue Valley Northwest/Colorado State-Pueblo) untied the game with his own RBI single in the bottom of the frame.
In the second game, the Macaws surged into the lead with four runs and led 6-5 entering the seventh, but a walk and 1B Harrison Juhl’s (Lawrence Free State) one-out RBI triple tied the game before Juhl scampered home with what proved to be the game-winning run on a sacrifice fly by Howard.
Regal romps in sweep of Prospects
Regal Plastic dominated the opening game against the Adapt Physical Therapy Prospects 15-1 then rode LHP Jacob Fickenscher (Park Hill/St. Olaf [Minnesota]) to a 4-0 shutout win to cap a sweep and cement its spot atop the American Division standings.
RHP Luke Fricker (Park Hill South/Johnson County CC) allowed only one unearned run in five two-hit innings, striking out five and walking one in a run-rule win to kick things off.
3B Taylor Foss (Shawnee Mission West/Baker) powered the offense, going 3-for-4 with two doubles, a walk and three RBIs. 2B Cole Slibowski (St. Joseph Lafayette/Northwest Missouri State) also drove in three for Regal in the romp.
Fickenscher tossed a four-hit shutout in the second game, striking out 10 in a dominant performance.
C Beckett Rasmussen (Louisburg/Rockhurst) staked Fickenscher and Regal to the lead with a two-run single in the second, while Foss added a solo home run in the third.
NBA battles back for split with Stars
The Creche Innovations Stars cruised to a 13-3 win in the opening game against Natural Baseball Academy, which bounced back for a stunning 9-8 walk-off win in the nightcap to secure a split.
The Stars needed only five innings to claim the opening-game victory behind RHP Michael Daggett (Paola/Truman State), who struck out six and scattered three hits and five walks in tossing a complete game.
LF Jake Miller (Vandegrift [Texas]/Southeastern Oklahoma State) and 1B Devon Lujan (Olathe East/Friends) each homered for the Stars. Miller also doubled, scored twice and drove in four runs, while Lujan scored three times.
But the second game featured the real fireworks.
The Stars led 8-3 entering the bottom of the seventh before NBA scored six to walk off as winners.
NBA had yet to dent the lead with two runners on and two outs before the rally started in earnest with back-to-back RBI singles from 1B Mark Elliott (Olathe South/Kansas City Kansas CC) and RF Carson Steiner (Olathe East/Missouri-St. Louis).
After a hit batter, LF Tyler Otroszko (Olathe South/Rose-Hulman IT [Indiana]) stroked a two-run single before C Jack Przybylski (St. Thomas Aquinas/Benedictine) cracked the game-winning, two-run double for a stunning comeback win.
Lebron’s no-hitter highlights Legends sweep
Despite allowing 18 hits, the Ban Johnson Legends found a way to slip past the KC Knights 12-11 in eight innings before pounding their way to an 18-0 rout with 22 hits of their own.
The sweep helped the Legends surge all alone into second place in the American Division.
Four Knights — SS Luke Scalf (Rockwood Summit [Missouri]/Rockhurst), LF Reece Hoover (De Soto/Northwestern [Iowa]), RF Braeden Schram (Smithville/Metropolitan CC) and 2B Jackson Truman (Lee’s Summit West/Emporia State) — had three hits each.
Midway through the sixth, the Knights led 10-5 thanks largely to a six-run sixth inning in which Schram hit a two-run double and later stole home.
The Legends answered with their six spot in the bottom of the sixth aided by three walks and two hit batters.
Schram’s sacrifice fly in the seventh helped force extra innings, but DH Bryce Dye’s (Fort Osage/Park) walk-off RBI double delivered a Legends win in the eighth.
During the second game, LHP Angel Lebron (Coamo [Puerto Rico]/Park) made sure there was far less drama, striking out 15 Knights in a no-hitter while allowing only two walks.
Dye and RF Darius Freeman (Shawnee Mission Northwest/Kansas City Kansas CC) both went 4-for-5. Dye homered, drove in two and scored twice, while Freeman tripled twice and finished with three runs scored and three RBIs.
CF Caleb Adams (Lansing/Kansas City Kansas CC) and 1B Zane Morrow (Shawnee Mission West/Missouri S&T) chipped in three hits apiece, including two doubles for Adams and a double and triple for Morrow, in the Legends’ onslaught.
Raiders’ arms key sweep of Royals
Pitching helped the BJ Raiders sweep aside the MSBL Royals 3-1 and 9-3.
RHP Matthew Nolan (Shawnee Mission Northwest/Northwestern Oklahoma State) struck out five in five scoreless innings for the Raiders, who led 1-0 in the first game into the sixth inning.
The Royals drew even with a steal of home only to have Raiders 1B Noah Steele (Shawnee Mission East/Johnson County CC) deliver the game-winning runs with a two-run triple in the bottom of the inning.
During the second game, the Raiders scored four in the first and third innings in support of RHP Austin Brooks (Plattsburg [Missouri]/Metropolitan CC), who struck out six in four innings.
1B Frankie Circello (Staley/Crowder CC) cranked a grand slam in the first inning, providing all the runs the Raiders would need.
CF Spencer Miller (Smithville/Metropolitan CC) added a three-run home run in the third for insurance and Circello added a solo bomb in the sixth, finishing 3-for-5 with five RBIs.
Giants topple Mustangs 10-2
3B Caleb Roofe (Lee’s Summit North/Highland CC) had a two-run single, RF Howie Grauberger (Lee’s Summit West/Drury) had a two-run triple and LF Brock Kobel (Lee’s Summit West/Central Missouri) added an RBI single as the NKC Apartments Giants scored five in the second inning and cruised from there to a 10-2 win against the Milgram Mustangs.
LF Amari Kemp (Lee’s Summit/Metropolitan CC) added a two-run double as the Giants tacked on three more in the fourth.
