In the second doubleheader in as many days, the Great Bend AAA American Legion baseball team got a strong pitching outing in Game 1.
The Chiefs held down Buhler 6-2 to win the first game. Great Bend took an early lead in Game 2, but fell 4-3.
Buhler started strong in the first game, driving in two runs in the first inning.
Early on, Great Bend starting pitcher Tristan Hall struggled with a few walks, giving up four in the game. He also only gave up one hit, coming in the first inning.
Tristan Hall settled in for the rest of the game, getting 10 strikeouts and allowing two unearned runs.
“We played pretty well,” Great Bend head coach Michael Stettinger said after Game 1. “Tristan Hall pitched a really good game for us. Really after the first two innings, he really settled down. He had a really good fastball today, so he was able to get that by a lot of guys.
“We made defensive plays when we needed to.”
However, Great Bend would overcome the early deficit.
Brady Michel got things started with an RBI triple in the bottom of the first inning.
Tristan Hall, who went 2-for-4 in the game, had a two-run double.
“Tristan just had a good day all around,” Stettinger said. “He had a solid day at the plate and on the mound.”
Heading into the top of the third, Great Bend led 3-2.
Dillon Reiser blasted a RBI triple into the gap in right-center field in the bottom of the third, making it 4-2.
Jaxx Hillman blooped a single into shallow left-center field with the bases loaded, knocking in two runs in the bottom of the fifth, making it 6-2.
“Offensively, we did a good job,” Stettinger said. “We got some big hits when we needed them with runners on first and second. We left too many guys stranded, though. We had bases loaded with only one out twice and we didn’t score any of them, so that’s something we’ve got to do better on.”

GAME 2
Buhler 4, Great Bend 3
Great Bend went ahead 2-0 in the bottom of the third.
Buhler scored a run in the top of the fourth, but Great Bend got that run back in the bottom of the inning.
Buhler took the lead in the top of the sixth, scoring three runs to make it 4-3.
Bryce Beck had the lone RBI for the Chiefs.
Beck went 5 2/3 innings, giving up four runs (three earned) on nine hits and two walks. He had four strikeouts.
Shade Wondra came on in relief for the final 1 1/3 innings. He had three strikeouts and one walk.