Wabash ends MCC’s win streak

By Robby Atkinson/Special to The Star

The Meridian Community College Eagles saw their five-game winning streak come to a stop on Saturday in the second day of the 2009 Rush Baseball Tournament.

Wabash Valley scored the game-winning run on a squeeze bunt in the eighth inning to take a 7-6 win over the Eagles at Scaggs Field. MCC did rebound in its final game of the day with a 14-4 win over Southeastern Illinois thanks to fabulous hitting from the entire Eagle lineup.

Other scores from the second day of the tournament included Wallace-Hanceville defeating Southeastern Illinois 14-1 and Wallace-Hanceville scoring a shutout of Wabash Valley, 4-0.

MCC (6-4) will return to action today with a pair of games and the conclusion of a suspended game from Friday at Scaggs Field.

The Eagles will resume their suspended game with Wabash Valley at noon. MCC leads the suspended game 3-0 in the bottom of the second inning. The Eagles will play Wabash Valley once more at 1:30 and wrap up the tournament at 3:30 against Southeastern Illinois.

Wabash Valley 7
Meridian 6

Paul Giel drove in the game-winning run for the Warriors on a squeeze bunt in the eighth inning that gave Wabash Vallley a come-from-behind victory over the Eagles.

The loss snapped an impressive early-season winning streak for the Eagles and head coach Chris Rose was not very pleased with his team's efforts in the loss.

"I just felt like that when we got ahead early in the game we felt satisfied and played with very little intensity," Rose said. "We just didn't make the plays and they did. I felt like we could have competed better."

The Warriors took the early lead in the game with a pair of runs in the first inning. Casey Dishman drove in the runs for the Warriors with a two-run single, but the Eagles would quickly respond in the bottom of the first.

Catcher Wesley Thigpen blasted a three- run homer over the wall in left to give MCC a 3-2 lead over Wabash. The Eagles would extend their lead in the third inning to 5-2 thanks to some great hitting in the middle of the lineup.

Former West Lauderdale standout Tyler Vick drove in a run on a single and William Beckwith added an RBI double in the inning for MCC.

Wabash Valley answered back with a two-run home run to cut the Eagle lead to 5-4. Daniel Nichols hit a towering shot that hit the scoreboard at Scaggs Field to bring the Warriors to within a run.

MCC got its final run of the game in fifth inning on a bases-loaded walk to Beckwith that made the score 6-4. Wabash Valley added single runs in the sixth and seventh innings to take the game to extra innings tied at 6-6.

Nichols led the eighth inning off with a single and stole second. He advanced to third base on a sacrifice bunt by Jeff Kerian and scored on the squeeze bunt by Giel.

Keith Butler was the winning pitcher in relief for the Warriors. Butler threw three innings and allowed no runs while collecting six strikeouts. Allen Johnson (0-1) was the losing pitcher in relief for MCC.

Meridian 14
SE Illinois 4

Freshman Kenny Sanders blasted a walk-off, three-run home run in the bottom of the sixth inning to lead MCC to the run-rule victory over the Falcons.

MCC scored five runs in the bottom of the first inning and never looked back in take the victory. Beckwith had a solo home run in the first inning for MCC and Vick added an RBI single.

"I thought we swung the bats much better in the second game," said Rose. "We had several guys to have great nights at the plate and it was good to see us come back after the disappointing loss."

Former Meridian High standout Taylor Scarbrough had an RBI triple in the five-run first inning for Eagles. Scarbrough finished the game with three hits and three RBIs for MCC.

MCC increased its lead to 8-0 in the third inning on a basesloaded walk to Jordan King, an RBI single by Scarbrough and a run on a fielding error by Southeastern Illinois.

The Falcons did manage a run in the fourth inning on a wild pitch and scratched for three runs in the fifth inning to cut the Meridian lead to 8-4. Sean Sullivan had an RBI double for the Falcons and Kenny Wagner added a two-run single.

MCC put the game away for good with six runs in the sixth inning.

Alan Williams (1-0) picked up the pitching win for MCC by going five innings. Williams allowed only one earned run and collected six strikeouts.