BY JIM MISUNAS
jmisunas@gbtribune.com

FORT SCOTT — The Larned Indians were down to their final strike when Landon Erway had two strikes.
But faltering Marysville starter Jacob Stryker proceeded to walk Erway with four consecutive balls. Isiah Perez followed with a bases-loaded walk for a 3-3 tie.
The titantic comeback was complete when reliever Jayton Huggard threw a wild pitch that scored Evan Skelton with the eventual game-winning run in a shocking 4-3 comeback victory in the Class AA American Legion State Baseball Tournament.
Larned reliever Gage Skelton retired Marysville in the seventh inning to preserve the victory. Larned catcher Tyler Stelter easily gunned down Jacob Latta, the potential tying runner, on an attempted seventh-inning steal.
“Everyone in the stadium was pretty shocked by that outcome, except for our guys,” said Larned coach Chad Erway. “Stryker is an outstanding pitcher. He’s by far one of the best pitchers we’ve faced. I knew his pitch count was getting elevated.”
Larned’s patience proved critical when Stryker’s pitch count reached 117 entering the seventh inning. He struck out six batters, but walked nine hitters.
Tyler Stelter singled and Alex Barger walked to start the seventh inning. Mason Schartz’s single scored Stelter and Evan Skelton drew Stryker’s seventh walk to put the go-ahead runner on base.
Gage Skelton followed with an RBI sacrifice fly for a 4-3 score. Landon Erway faced an 0-2 count, but stayed away from four consecutive balls to load the bases. Isiah Perez drew a tying walk on five pitches. Marysville reliever jayton Huggard uncorked a wild pitch and Evan Skelton scored the go-ahead run.
“We were fortunate, very lucky to get out of that,” coach Erway said.
The predicted pitcher’s duel was headed Marysville’s way with a 3-0 lead after six innings.
Lefthander Stryker struck out six batters while shutting out Larned for six innings. The Indians had trouble delivering hard-hit balls against Stryker, who handcuffed the Indians with an effective mix of pitches.
“We were stagnant,” Erway said. “No one was hitting the ball.”
Marysville’s Jacob Latta delivered a two-run fifth-inning triple and RBI single. Larned pitcher Perez struck out Caleb Maynard, but he reached first base when catcher Stelter was unable to complete the throw to first base. Tommy Brinegar singled and Latta made Larned pay for the mistake with a two-run triple for 3-0 lead.
“I tip my cap to Marysille because their hitters put the bat on the ball at crucial times,” Erway said. “They are a very well coached team.”
Brinegar tripled to right field and Latta singled him home for a third-inning run off Perez. Perez started an inning-ending double play against Jayton Haggard to end the third inning.
Larned wasted its first threat on a missed sign on an attempted double steal. Gage Skelton singled Mason Schartz over to third base in the third inning. But catcher C.J. Becker threw out Gage Skelton on a double steal that Schartz was coached to steal home. Styker struck out Landon Erway to strand Schartz at third base.
Larned’s second threat ended after Perez singled and Landon Erway walked with two out in the sixth inning. Stryker retired Jonathan Herter on a fly ball.
Schartz was also gunned down by Becker on a throw to shortstop Jayton Huggard in the fifth inning.
• GOODLAND 3, IOLA 2 — Goodland’s Evan Peter drove home the tying and winning runs in the bottom of the seventh inning to stun Iola 3-2.
Iola’s Daylon Sprague’s RBI double scored Justice Pugh in the sixth inning for a 2-1 lead. Iola’s Ethan Sigg singled home Sprague in the third inning for a 1-0 lead. Goodland’s Louie Ledesma singled home Paul Diaz for a fourth-inning run for a 1-1 tie.
• DONIPHAN CO. 3, RUSSELL 2 — Hunter Idol’s RBI single scored Brody Winder with the sixth-inning game-winner. Pitcher Nathan Gaarder retired the final three batters to strand the tying runner at third base. Russell's Colton Fritschen, Tanner Rome and Mason Beagley reached base to load the bases.
Doniphan County led 1-0 on an RBI single by Wyatt Huss that drove home Wil Smith. Russell led 2-1 after three innings when Logan Braun drove home Colton Fritschen on a sacrifice fly and Brandon Ridgley’s double scored Chase Prester. Doniphan County tied it 2-2 after five innings when Wil Smith’s RBI drove home Reid Greaser. 

Russell's Brandon Ridgley pitched solidly, but three Russell errors led to three unearned runs.

FORT SCOTT 13, COLBY 5 – Fort Scott’s Chase Brown ignited a 13-run attack with a home run, double and four RBIs. Fort Scott closed the game with a five-run sixth inning when Colby’s defense collapsed. Brown, Carter Young, Taylor Engstrom, Marcus Jamison and DeVonte Robinson scored sixth-inning runs. Jamison dropped down an RBI bunt and Robinson doubled and scored on a game-ending error.

Engstrom, Jamison and Chandler Defebaugh delivered RBIs in the first inning after Brown homered. Kieran Houlihan tripled and scored on Brown’s second-inning sacrifice fly.

Brown delivered a two-run double and Kaleb Delatorre’s single scored Defebaugh for three unearned runs in the third inning. Fort Scott drilled nine extra-base hits.

Colby’s Ben Matchell drove in two runs and Rex Branum scored two runs. Brady Holzmeister doubled and scored a run.

LARNED 4, MARYSVILLE 3
LARNED AB R H BI
Evan Skelton 2 1 0 0
Gage Skelton 2 0 1 1
Landon Erway 2 0 0 0
Isiah Perez 3 0 1 1
Jon Herter 3 0 0 0
Tyler Stelter 3 1 1 0
Alex Barger 1 1 0 0
Carson Smith 3 0 0 0
Mason Schartz 1 1 1 1
TOTALS 20 4 4 2
MARYSVILLE AB R H BI
Tom Brinegar 4 2 2 0
Jacob Latta 3 0 2 3
Trey Lohse 4 0 0 0
Jayton Haggard 3 0 1 0
Hunter Warwick 3 0 0 0
C.J. Becker 1 0 0 0
Adam Lindhorst 2 0 0 0
Jacob Stryker 1 0 0 0
Caleb Maynard 3 1 0 0
TOTALS 25 3 5 3
Larned 000 000 4 — 4 4 2
Marysville 001 020 0 — 3 5 0
3B—Brinegar, Latta. S—Evan Skelton, Stryker. SB—Evan Skelton, Haggard. CS—Gage Skelton, Schartz, Stryker, Latta. PB—Becker. E—Perez, Stelter. HP—Lohse, Stryker, Lindhorst. WP—Huggard. DP—Larned 1. LOB—Larned 7, Marysville 6.
Larned IP H R ER BB SO
Perez 5.1 5 3 3 2 8
GSkelton 1.2 0 0 0 1 0
Marys. IP H R ER BB SO
Stryker 6.2 4 4 4 9 6
Huggard 0.1 0 0 0 0 1

FORT SCOTT 13, COLBY 5

Colby 220 100 -- 5 7 5

Fort Scott 413 005 -- 13 14 2

Quagliano, Wright (6) and Tucker Branum. Page and Chase Brown. W--Page. L--Quagliano. 2B--FC, Engstrom 2, Young 2, Robinson, Brown; Colby, Matchell, Holtzmeister. 3B--FS, Houlihan, DeLatorre. HR--FS, Brown.

DONIPHAN COUNTY 3, RUSSELL 2

DC 010 011 0  — 3 7 0 

Russell 002 000 0 — 2 5 3

Gaarder and Greaser. Ridgley and Schmidtberger. W—Gaardner. L—Ridgley. 2B—R, Prster, Ridgley; DC, Sith. 

GOODLAND 3, IOLA 2
Iola 001 001 0 — 2
Goodland 000 100 2 — 3
Splane and Zimmerman. Seeger and Peter. W—Seeger. L—Splane. 2B—G, Diaz; Iola, Sprague.

AA STATE TOURNAMENT
At Fort Scott (Dave Regan Stadium)
Wednesday’s Games
Game 1—Goodland Outlaws 3, Iola Indians 2
Game 2—Larned Indians 4, Marysville 3
Game 3—Troy-Doniphan County 3, Russell 2
Game 4—Fort Scott Indians 13, Colby Sluggers 5
Thursday’s Games
Game 5, 10 a.m.— Marysville 29-7 vs. Iola Indians 18-14
Game 6, 12:30 p.m.—Russell 14-9 vs. Coly Sluggers 14-16
Game 7, 6 p.m.— Larned Indians 15-11 vs. Goodland Outlaws
Game 8, 8:30 p.m.—Doniphan County 30-2 vs. Fort Scott 20-17
Friday’s Games
Game 9, 10 a.m.—Winner Game 6 vs. Loser Game 7
Game 10, 12:30 p.m.—Winner Game 5 vs. Loser Game 8
Game 11, 6 p.m.—Winners Game 7, 8
Game 12, 8:30 p.m.—Winners Game 9, 10
Saturday’s Games
Game 13, 10 a.m.—Winner Game 12 vs. Loser Game 11
Game 14, 12:30 p.m.—Winners Game 11, 13 (First championship game)
Sunday’s Game
Game 15, 10 a.m.—Winner Game 14 vs. Loser Game 14 (if needed)