BY JIM MISUNAS
COLBY – When Quinter/Gove County shocked hometown Colby with a 7-run seventh inning in an 8-5 win, Larned Legion coach Chad Erway was on his way to a perfect 4-0 week.
Larned pitcher Brady Hope (2-1) threw a 5-inning no-hitter for a 17-0 championship victory over Gove County. Larned outscored four teams 57-5 and completed a dominating 4-game winning streak. Larned (8-8) advances to the AA/AAA state tournament at Topeka July 27-31. Larned (8-8) will play Hiawatha (15-9), Concordia (19-3) and Iola at the state tournament at Topeka.
Gove County's rally spoiled a Colby/Larned rematch.
"I couldn't believe what was happening in the seventh inning," Erway said.
LARNED 17, GOVE COUNTY 0 (G8) – Larned's top three hitters compiled dazzling batting stats. Logan Erway (7-for-9) scored 10 runs with four RBIs. Hope (7-for-11) scored 10 runs with six RBIs. Carson Shaver (6-for-9) scored seven runs with three RBIs.
"Logan Erway and Brady Hope were on fire at the plate," Erway said. "The guys took care of business and got after it. We're putting together quality baseball games. It's good to see all our guys contributing."
Larned was on cruise control with an 11-run first inning against Gove County starter Lakin Getz. Owen Reece was the hitting star with four RBIs and two hits. Hope, Ty Smith and Camden Bird each drove in two runs. Gavin Alvarez and Shaver each drove in a run.
Gove County's Matt Bayers reached base on a first-inning error, but Hope picked him off at first base.
GOVE COUNTY 8, COLBY 5 (G7) – Quinter/Gove County had Colby right where they wanted them, down 5-0. Sure enough, Gove County scored eight consecutive runs for a shocking 8-5 comeback victory over Colby.
None of the Gove County players competed in high school baseball.
Gove County's 7-run seventh inning was identical to a 10-run seventh-inning rally against Norton. Singles by Vollbrecht and Andre Vaughn started the inning against Colby pitcher Brayden Foss. Vollbracht scored on Parker Reling's single. Corbin Bockwinkle drew a walk after stretching an at-bat. Vaughn scored on Bradley Riedel's single. Keaton Harvey was hit by a pitch on a 2-strike count. Reling scored on a balk. Lakin Getz's topped single scored Bockwinkle for a 5-5 tie.
Mathew Elder's topped single to shortstop scored Riedel for a 6-5 lead. Vollbracht's single scored Harvey and Getz for an 8-5 lead off reliever Marcus Singer.
LARNED 16, GOVE COUNTY 2 (G5) – Larned pitcher Owen Reece (3-1) yielded a 2-run single to Mathew Elder after throwing five shutout innings with eight strikeouts. Reece threw 107 pitches before Logan Erway recorded the final two outs.
Larned took advantage of 14 walks, four errors and two balks for an easy run-rule victory. Larned combined four walks, an error and two balks for a 4-0 lead. Brady Hope singled home Ian Orth. Hope and Carlos Ibarra scored on balks by pitcher Trace Kinderknecht. Cade Colglazier scored on an error.
Owen Reece singled home Colglazier in the third inning. Ibarra scored on a fifth-inning error. Larned iced the victory with a 5-run sixth inning. Colglazier delivered a 2-run single and Owen Reece hit an RBI single. Ibarra and Reece scored on Gove County errors.
Larned finished strong with a 5-run seventh inning. Hope hit a sacrifice fly. Erway singled home Orth. Erway and Ibarra scored on wild pitches. Deacon Martin scored on a Gavin Alvarez single.
LARNED 11, COLBY 0 (G3) – Larned’s hard-throwing righthander Alvarez (2-2) baffled Colby on a 2-hit shutout with 11 strikeouts. Baker University pitcher Alvarez threw a fastball in the mid 80s and mixed a sharp-breaking knuckleball and curveball for several strikeouts in a nifty 89-pitch outing. Colby’s Landon Vogler singled in the second inning.
“Gavin was throwing it past batters,” said Larned coach Chad Erway. “He was throwing all his pitches for strikes.”
After Ibarra drove home Hope with a sacrifice fly, Larned broke the game open with a 6-run second inning. Reece and Ty Smith scored on wild pitches. Shaver was rewarded with an unlikely RBI on a high pop fly that Colby third baseman Vogler lost in the lights. Shaver scored on Orth’s second perfect squeeze bunt. Ibarra’s triple scored Hope and Erway for a 7-0 lead.
Larned closed out a run-rule victory with a 4-run fourth inning. Erway and Ibarra scored on wild pitches. Colglazier singled home Ibarra. Colglazier scored on Reece’s groundball that was misplayed for an 11-0 lead.
LARNED 13, NESS CITY 3 (G2) – Hope stayed on fire with four hits, two runs scored and two RBIs to spark Larned. Larned’s top trio batted 7-for-9 with six runs and seven RBIs. Orth scored three runs with three RBIs. Erway drove in three runs with a pair of base hits.
Hope and Erway drove home runs in a 2-run first inning. Ian Orth brought home Carson Shaver with a perfect squeeze bunt. Shaver and Erway drove home runs in a 5-run second inning.
Orth and Erway drove home runs. Shaver scored on a wild pitch and Erway scored on an error in a 4-run third inning. Orth drove home Shaver and Hope’s single scored Orth for a run-rule victory.
COLBY 4, NORTON 3 (G4) – Colby ace pitcher Shane Puckett (4-3) struck out 12 batters after Colby coach Brian Quagliano elected to bypass his best pitcher against Larned. Puckett sports a 2.26 ERA with 69 strikeouts in 40 innings, 12 strikeouts per 7 innings.
Colby led 3-0 on a bases-loaded walk and two bases-loaded first-inning hit batters. Clayton Barton scored on Puckett's sacrifice fly.
Norton's Bailey Sides doubled home Coryn Cox, Wyatt Hammond singled home Sides and Hammond scored on a sixth-inning groundout for a 4-3 score. Puckett retired the side in the seventh inning.
GOVE COUNTY 14, NORTON 13 (G1) – Gove County scored 10 runs in the bottom of the seventh inning for a shocking 14-13 victory over Norton after trailing 12-1. Lakin Getz and Bradley Riedel delivered 2-run hits and Corbin Bockwinkel hit an RBI single. Nathan Vollbracht scored on a bases-loaded walk after Matthew Beyers drew a walk after an 0-2 count. Bockwinkel scored the winning run. None of the Gove County players competed in high school baseball.
Gove Co. 000 00 – 0 0 3
Larned (11)02 4x – 17 13 1
Getz, Vollbracht (4) and Elder. Hope and Shaver. W—Hope, 2-1. L—Getz, 0-1. 2B—L—Shaver.
Gove Co. 000 001 7 — 8 11 3
Colby 202 010 0 — 5 9 2
Reidel, Bockwinkle (6) and Elder. Foss, Singer (7) and Barton. W—Bockwinkle. L—Foss. 2B—C—Max Kinderknecht.
Larned 401 010 5 5 – 16 9 0
Gove Co. 000 002 0 – 2 3 4
Reece, Erway (7) and Shaver. Kinderknecht, Getz (5), Bockwinkle (6), Vollbracht (7) and Getz, Elder (5). W—Reece, 3-1. L—Kinderknecht. 3B—L—Erway.
Norton 000 003 0 – 3 4 1
Colby 310 000 x – 4 5 3
Hauser, Sides (3) and Hammond. Puckett and Barton. W—Puckett, 4-3. L—Hauser. 2B—C—Vogler; N—Sides, Hauser.
Ness City 020 01 — 3 4 3
Larned 254 02 — 13 11 2
McGranahan, Schmidt (2) and Garcia, Payne. Reece, Orth (2) and Shaver. W—Orth, 1-2. L—McGranahan. 2B—L—Hope, Shaver. 3B—L—Erway, Orth.
Colby 000 00 — 0 2 3
Larned 160 4x — 11 7 0
Foss, Puckett (2), Vogel (4), Max Kersenbrock (5) and Barton. Alvarez and Shaver. W—Alvarez, 2-2. L—Foss, 3-2. 3B—L—Ibarra.
Norton 000 000 0 — 13
Gove Co. 000 000 (10) — 14
Beyers, Kinderknecht (6), Riedel (7) and Elder. Hammond, Cox (3), Smith ( 5), Shanklin (6), Long (7) and Sides. W—Riedel. L—Long. 2B—GC—Riedel. 3B—N—Hammond, Sides.
AA ZONES
COLBY (1 qualifier)—7-20—G1—Gove County 14, Norton 13; G2—Larned 13, Ness City 3; G3—Larned 11, Colby 0; 7-21—G4—Norton def. Ness City; G5— Colby 4, Norton 3; G6—Larned 16, vs. Gove County 2; 7-22—G7—Gove County 8, Colby 5; G8—Larned 17, Gove County 0
CONCORDIA (1 qualifier)—Clifton 9, Republic County 8; Clay Center 14, Smith County 6; Concordia 16, Clifton 11; Beloit 9, Clay Center 4; Beloit 12, Concordia 10; Republic County 16, Clay Center 0; Smith County 8, Clifton 7; Concordia 11, Republic County 8; Concordia 10, Beloit 5; Concordia 10, Beloit 4; SQ—Concordia 19-3
IOLA (1 qualifier)—Iola 10, Winfield 0; Iola 8, Parsons 0; Iola 10, Parsons 2; SQ—Iola 17-9
HIGHLAND (1 qualifier)—Seneca 4, Marysville 3; Hiawatha 3, Corning 1; Doniphan County def. Seneca; Doniphan County 16, Hiawatha 9; Marysville 9, Corning 6; Seneca 10, Marysville 8; Hiawatha 25, Seneca 2; Hiawatha 9, Doniphan County 1; Hiawatha 13, Doniphan County 0; SQ—Hiawatha 15-9
AAA STATE QUALIFIERS—Topeka Kansas Senators 23-6, Leavenworth 9-4, Pittsburg 12-9-1, Ottawa 9-12
AA/AAA STATE JULY 27-31
TOPEKA BETTIS SPORTS COMPLEX
7-27—Hiawatha (15-9) vs. Larned (8-8), 10 a.m.; Concordia (19-3) vs. Iola (17-9), 3 p.m.
7-28—Iola vs. Larned, 9 a.m.; Concordia vs. Hiawatha, 2 p.m.
7-29—Concordia vs. Larned, 9 a.m.; Hiawatha vs. Iola, 2 p.m.
7-30—SEMIFINALS—AA vs. AAA, 9 a.m.; AA vs. AAA, 11:30; FINALS—2:30
AAA STATE QUALIFIERS
7-27—Pittsburg (12-9-1) vs. Ottawa Arrows (9-12), 12:30 p.m.; Topeka Kansas Senators (23-6) vs. Leavenworth (9-4), 6 p.m.
7-28—Leavenworth vs. Pittsburg, 11:30 a.m.; Kansas Senators vs. Ottawa, 4:30
7-29—Leavenworth vs. Ottawa, 11:30 a.m.; Kansas Senators vs. Pittsburg, 4:30
7-30—SEMIFINALS—AA vs. AAA, 9 a.m.; AA vs. AAA, 11:30; FINALS—2:30
i try to gather some information; weve gained some stuff on hiawatha; good no. 1 pitcher, 40 k; looks like they hit pretty well; i call and try and get some information; look at all-state lists; my biggest deal, one round, through the order; my biggest goal is to try and get into bracket play; likely have to win a couple games; throw reece; throw gavin alvarez, hope concordia; come down to if we make 2 errors, throw strikes, be in it; not throwing strikes; weve got a handful of guys who can throw strikes; 4-5 arms to get through; timely hitting; iola best team; peaking at the right time; not playing games; jr. won it; carlos ibarra, logan erway, 4th time; does help, used to that type of baseball; lot of good that comes from that
