Staff Reports
PIQUA — The Sidney Post 217 legion baseball team picked up its fourth win in a row with a 7-3 victory over Piqua Post 184 Tuesday at Hardman Field in Piqua.
With the win, Sidney improved to 10-7.
Pitchers Josh Nixon and Cam Clark combined for 10 strike outs, while issuing four walks and scattering four hits in the victory.
After both teams went scoreless through the first three innings of the game, Sidney got on the board first when Nixon drew a walk, moved to second on a wild pitch and then scored on an RBI single by Jackson Hobbs. Sidney would extend its lead to 2-0 in the top of the fifth inning when Drew Wehrman drew a walk, advanced to second on Austin McClain sacrifice bunt and scored when Piqua committed a throwing error.
Piqua would answer back in the bottom of the sixth inning, however, scoring three runs on a walk, single, triple and fielder’s choice. From that point on, however, Sidney’s defense shut Piqua down the rest of the game.
“My kids never once dropped their heads,” Sidney Post 217 coach Jim Koewler said. “They kept playing hard and getting their swings in at the plate. We only struck out twice for the night — we also had a lot of hard hit balls right at them.”
Sidney would take the lead back in the top of the eighth, scoring three runs with two outs. Brett McEldowney got hit by a pitch, Daniel Berning reached on an error and Wehrman and McClain both followed with singles. Dakota Bollinger then came through with the big hit of the inning, a ground-rule double.
Sidney would add a pair of insurance runs in the top of the ninth inning. Clark singled, McEldowney once again was hit by a pitch and Berning followed with an RBI single. Wehrman got down a suicide squeeze bunt to score McEldowney for the final run of the game.
In the bottom of the night, Clark slammed the door shut to preserve the victory.
Sidney hosts Muncie at 6 p.m. today, then plays in the Nischwitz Tournament at Wright State University this weekend.
Friday, Sidney will play the Ohio Thunder at 11:30 a.m. and The Canes at 2 p.m. Saturday, Sidney will play The Coasters at 4:30 p.m. and The Classics at 7 p.m. Sidney could play on Sunday, as well, depending on how it fares in its first four games of the tournament.
Contact sports editor Ken Barhorst at [email protected]
