Yates Center – The Yates Center High School baseball team had a rough outing here Thursday, April 4, falling to Pleasanton in both ends of a doubleheader.
The Blu-Jays won both games by wide margins, taking the first game 20-3 and following that up with a 20-4 victory.
Despite the big run differential, YCHS head coach Jarrod McVey felt the games were not as lopsided as the final scores indicated.
“We actually started out well In both games. We were competing hard and putting the ball in play," McVey said. "But we just have to learn to put it together for seven innings – not just two or three innings a game."
Yates Center trailed just 1-0 entering the third inning of the opener, when Pleasanton plated four runs to go up 5-0. Still, the Wildcats rallied with three runs in the bottom of the frame to make it 5-3.
It was still only 7-3 in the fifth inning, when the Blu-Jays blew the game open with a 13-run inning.
Kaiden Rutherford had two hits for YC, while William Stackhouse and Blake Morrison each collected one. Stackhouse, Morrison and Jacob Meigs picked us RBIs for the Wildcats.
In the nightcap, Yates Center again started strong, tying the game 2-2 after one inning. But the Blu-Jays were relentless, posting three runs in the seconds, eight in the third and seven more in the fourth to win going away.
Stackhouse scored two of the four Wildcat runs and had one of the team’s five hits in the nightcap. Evan McVey had two hits and Tristan Ballin had two RBI in a losing cause.
Yates Center pitchers allowed 21 hits and issued 19 walks during the twinbill. The ’Cats also committed a total of 12 errors.
"Our bats are starting to pick up, now we just have to continue to cut down on giving up free passes and playing cleaner baseball in the field," McVey noted. “We will continue to work hard daily, and I have no doubt that we will get back on track for the rest of the season."
The Wildcats (2-6) were slated to host St. Paul on Monday and travel to Mound City to face Jayhawk-Linn on Thursday.