The Hays Eagles must have Great Bend’s number.
The Eagles won Game 2 of a doubleheader, 6-1, in spite of a 10-inning pitching performance by Bryce Beck. Hays also won Game 1, 11-0 in four innings on Tuesday night at the Great Bend Sports Complex.
“Our team has great resolve,” Great Bend head coach Michael Stettinger said. “They don’t live and die with one pitch, and that’s something we preach. That’s one of our mottos out here is that we don’t do that.
“We kept battling. They competed the way we wanted them to. Through 10 innings, we had 100 percent effort.”
After giving up one run in the top of the first inning of Game 2, Great Bend starting pitcher Beck went head-to-head with Hays right-hander Brady Bieker.
The Chiefs tied the game at 1-1 in the bottom of the fourth after Johnny Allende, who went 3-for-4 with a walk, hit a single and scored on a Braden Jones single.
“It was big,” Stettinger said. “Johnny had a big night at the plate. He had three hits in the second game. He had a big night for us at the plate.”
It was Great Bend’s first run against the Eagles in four games this season.
With runners on second and third with one out in the bottom of the fifth, Beck had a chance to put his team ahead, but he popped up a bunt to Hays catcher Jake Sedbrook, who threw to Layne Downing at third base to nail Logan Zecha for a double play and get out of the inning.
Beck, who had seven strikeouts, put up eight straight scoreless innings before Chandler Rule hit a three-run double in the top of the 10th. A pair of RBI doubles put the Eagles ahead 6-1.
“Beck pitched his tail off the entire game,” Stettinger said. “He threw the best game that I’ve seen him throw in his high school career. Honestly, our defense made plays, but Bryce Beck gave us opportunity after opportunity to win the game.”
Dillon Reiser started for Great Bend in the first game.He went two-thirds of an inning, allowing five runs on one hit. He had three hit batters and one walk.
“Dillon had a little bit of a tough time adjusting out there,” Stettinger said. “The other guys did a nice job coming in and backing up for him. Really we didn’t get too beat up after that.
“Dillon didn’t give up a lot of hits, either. They weren’t all over him. He was just having a tough time controlling his off-speed pitches.”
Anson Hall relieved Reiser. He hit one batter before getting the final out of the inning.
Cameron Klaus went all four innings on the mound for Hays. He had eight strikeouts, and gave up four hits — all in the bottom of the second.
The Chiefs had the bases loaded in the second, but Klaus, who struck out six of the final seven batters he faced, caught Rane Libeer looking to get out of the jam.
The Eagles scored three runs in the top of the second, two in the third and one in the fourth to end the game with the run rule.
The Chiefs will compete in the Grand Slam Tournament in Salina, starting on Thursday.
Great Bend faces the Wichita Aces at 11:15 a.m. and Columbus, Neb., at 3:45 on Thursday. Both games will be held at Jamie Matson Stadium.
On Saturday, the Chiefs challenge the Lawrence Raiders at 9 a.m. at Dean Evans Stadium, and then head back to Jamie Matson Stadium to face the Topeka Golden Giants at 1:30 p.m.
CLASS AAA AMERICAN LEGION BASEBALL
Tuesday
At Great Bend
Great Bend Sports Complex
GAME 1
Hays 11, Great Bend 0 (4)
123 4 R H E
Hays 532 1 — 11 6 0
Great Bend 000 0 — 0 3 4
Cameron Klaus & Jake Sedbrook; Dillon Reiser, Anson Hall (1) & Jared Maneth. W — Klaus. L — Reiser. 2B — Hays (Sedbrook, Danny Bittel).
GAME 2
Hays 6, Great Bend 1 (10)
123 456 789 10 R H E
Hays 100 000 000 5 — 6 12 1
Great Bend 000 100 000 0 — 1 8 0
Brady Bieker, Kade Parker (6), Clayton Basgall (10) & Jake Sedbrook; Bryce Beck & Anson Hall. W — Parker. L — Beck. 2B — Hays (Chandler Rule, John Griffith, Sedbrook). 3B — Hays (Rule).
