PRATT— It was a very rewarding Father’s Day for the dad’s of the Barton Bandits 13U baseball team. Behind exceptional pitching the Bandits successfully defended back-to-back tournament titles at the 2015 Smoky Ford Wood Bat Tournament held this weekend at the Green Sports Complex in Pratt.  

“We have a lot of players stepping up to pound the strike zone at any given time”  said head coach Chris Smith.  “It is evident that when our pitchers throw a lot of strikes our defense plays well and our bats come alive.”  

Last weekend’s pitching performances were highlighted by Gage Fritz, Eduardo Bujanda, and Townshend Kurth.  Fritz pitched five innings, allowing zero runs on one hit, three walks and six strike outs. Bujanda pitched six innings, allowing one run on two hits, four walks and ten strike outs while Kurth pitched six innings allowing one run on four hits, two walks and six strike outs.  

Offensively Kurth went a perfect four-for-four in the championship game while Bujanda was three-for-four in the semifinal game. At 31-11-1 on the season the Bandits head to the 3&2 Sports Complex in Shawnee, Kansas for the USSSA Class AA State Tournament this week.