BY JIM MISUNAS
jmisunas@gbtribune.com
Great Bend pitcher Stefan Spray pitched a three-hitter to spark the Braves past the Hays Eagles 5-2 to capture first place in the Braves' Legion baseball tournament. The Braves improve to 8-8 by playing their three best games of the summer at the Great Bend Sports Complex.
BRAVES 5, HAYS EAGLES 2 (G3) — Jade Poe drove in two runs to spark the Braves' offense. Poe singled home Sage Koelsch and Chayse Gruber singled home Poe for a 2-0 lead after one inning. Poe singled home Matthew Moeder for a 3-0 lead after two innings.
Hays' Dawson Vonfeldt doubled home Andrew Moore and Noah Weimer in the third inning for a 3-2 score. Gruber scored on a fifth-inning error and Paco Hernandez doubled home Joseph Moeder for a 5-2 lead.
BRAVES 11, HUTCHINSON 3 (G2) — Gavin Haberman and Esten Moore each drove home two runs. Koelsch scored on a first-inning error and Poe scored a run in a four-run first inning. Gruber doubled home Haberman and Gruber scored on a wild pitch. Poe scored on a second-inning groundout.
The Braves scored six fourth-inning runs. Haberman and Spray delivered RBI singles. Poe scored on a passed ball and Haberman scored on a wild pitch. Matthew Moeder scored a run and Spray scored on a groundout for an 11-2 lead.
BRAVES 9, HOISINGTON 5 (G1) — Joseph Moeder drove home four runs and Gavin Haberman drove home three runs as the Braves downed Hoisington's Legion team in the Braves Legion Tournament.
Joseph Moeder doubled home Jade Poe, Brad Beck and Chayse Gruber in the first inning. Stefan Spray scored on Poe's second-inning groundball for a 4-0 lead.
Hoisington's Trey Byers made it 4-3 with a three-run fourth-inning triple that scored Holt Hanzlick, Jacob Specht and Grant Gwinner. The Braves responded with a five-run inning. Esten Moore scored on an error. Haberman's bases-loaded double scored Sage Koelsch, Poe and Beck for a 8-3 lead. Haberman scored on Joseph Moeder's single.
Hoisington scored two sixth-inning runs. Byers forced home a run on a bases-loaded walk. Jerred Bieberle's single scored Gwinnner for a 9-5 final.
HOISINGTON 18, HAYS EAGLES 6 — Hoisington's Gwinner drove in five runs and Braxton Donovan and Jacob Specht each drove in two runs. Hoisington scored in all five innings.
Hoisington 000 302 0 — 5 5 2
GB Braves 310 500 x — 9 8 3
Brandon Schulte and Specht. Gruber, Joseph Moeder (6) and Beck. W—Gruber. L—B. Schulte. 2B—GB—Haberman, Joseph Moeder. 3B—H—Byers.
GB Braves 410 60 — 11 4 3
Hutchinson 011 10 — 3 3 5
Hernandez and Poe. W—Hernandez. 2B—GB—Gruber.
Hays Eagles 002 000 0 — 2 3 2
GB Braves 210 020 x — 5 7 2
Wellbrock, Dale (6) and Dale, Cox (6). Spray and Beck. W—Spray. L—Wellbrock. 2B—GB—Koelsch; H—Vonfeldt.
Hoisington 243 54 — 18 15 5
Hays Eagles 311 01 — 6 8 7
Derek Boxberger and Specht. Robbins, Vonfeldt (4) and Cox. W—D. Boxberger. L—Robbins. 2B—Hois—D. Boxberger, Specht; H—Cox. 3B—Hois—Gwinner.