jmisunas@gbtribune.com
DODGE CITY – Great Bend catcher Brad Beck played a phenomenal defensive game in a hard-luck 5-2 baseball loss to Dodge City Tuesday.
Beck threw out four baserunners attempting to steal and tagged a fifth Dodge City baserunner out at home. Beck threw out Remington Miller (third), Aaron Trent (fourth), Tucker Smith (fourth) and Ty Vilaysing (fifth) on attempted steals. Centerfielder Gavin Haberman and third baseman Matt Nieman relayed for Beck to tag Miller out at home (first inning).
But the Panthers were unable to deliver clutch base hits, leaving 13 baserunners stranded and hitting two-for-11 with runners in scoring position.
The Panthers (3-4, 2-2 WAC) would’ve passed Dodge City (8-3, 4-1 WAC) for first place with a victory. The Panthers’ WAC title hopes will be determined by a single game at Hays Thursday and a doubleheader at Garden City Friday.
Dodge City scored three first-inning runs and scored three runs on two errors and a wild pitch.
Erubiel Duron singled home Matt Friess to ignite a three-run first inning. Duron scored on a wild pitch. Aidan Sowers scored on Miller’s double for a 3-0 lead off pitcher Stefan Spray. Sowers scored Dodge City’s third-inning run on a two-out error for a 4-0 lead.
The Panthers had stranded six baserunners with zero for six hitting with runners in scoring position when Mathew Moeder’s bases-loaded fifth-inning walk drove home Chayse Gruber. But Dodge City pitcher Duron struck out Haberman to leave the bases loaded.
The Panthers handed Dodge City a second unearned run when Duron’s fifth-inning sacrifice fly scored Friess, who reached base on an error for a 5-1 lead.
Great Bend’s Sage Koelsch and Beck delivered back-to-back sixth-inning singles to load the bases. But Dodge City rightfielder Friess threw to catcher Aldon Knedler who tagged Edwin Chavez out on Gruber’s fly ball for a inning-ending double play.
The Panthers rallied again in the seventh inning when Joseph Moeder singled home Haberman after a double. But reliever Dawson Taylor retired Edwin Chavez to end the ballgame.
Great Bend 000 001 1 – 2 9 3
Dodge City 301 011 x – 5 6 2
Spray and Beck. Duron, Taylor (6) and Knedler. W—Duron. L—Spray. 2B—GB—Koelsch, Gruber, Haberman; DC—Miller
WAC BASEBALL
Dodge City 4-1 8-3
Hays High 2-1 4-1
Great Bend 2-2 3-4
Garden City 2-2 6-2
Liberal 0-3 4-3
MONDAY—*Hays 11-2, Dodge City 1-9
TUESDAY—*Dodge City 5, Great Bend 2
THURSDAY—*Great Bend at Hays; Liberal at Guthrie, Okla.
FRIDAY—*Great Bend at Garden City; Dodge City at Wichita Heights
SATURDAY—Hays at Olathe Heritage
DODGE CITY (4-1, 8-3)—WL Andover 8-0, 1-9; W Newton 11-3; L Valley Center 12-13; W *Garden City 7-2; WW Wichita South 22-0, 13-3; W *Liberal 13-2; WL *Hays High 9-2, 1-11; W *Great Bend 5-2; 4-23—Wichita Heights; 4-27—*Garden City (1); 4-30—*Great Bend (1); 5-4—at McPherson/Campus; 5-11—*Liberal (1)
HAYS HIGH (3-2, 5-2)—WW Washburn Rural 5-3, 7-3; WL *Garden City 16-6, 22-23 ; W *Great Bend 3-0; WL *Dodge City 11-1, 2-9; 4-22—*Great Bend (1); 4-24—at Olathe Heritage; 4-30—*Liberal; 5-6/8—Manhattan at Hays Western Diamond; 5-11—at Ulysses
GREAT BEND (2-2, 3-4)—L Junction City 6-7; L McPherson 0-10; W Hutchinson 10-3; WW *Liberal 7-2, 15-9; L *Hays 0-3; L *Dodge City 2-5; 4-22—*at Hays (1); 4-23—*at Garden City (2); 4-27—Hays-TMP (2); 4-30—*Dodge City (1); 5-3—Hutchinson (2); 5-6/8—at Hays Western Diamond; 5-14—Goddard Eisenhower (2)
GARDEN CITY (2-2, 6-2)—WW Wichita Heights 19-0, 14-7; W *Liberal 7-4; WW Goodland 6-5, 14-2; L *Dodge City 2-7; WL *Hays High 23-22, 6-16; 4-23—*Great Bend; 4-26—*Liberal (1); 4-27—*at Dodge City (1); 5-3—at Lamar, Colo; 5-11—at Hays-TMP
LIBERAL (0-4, 4-6)—WW Hugoton 17-7, 10-6; L *Garden City 4-7; WW Guymon, Okla. 14-8, 19-3; LL *Great Bend 2-7, 9-15; L *Dodge City 2-13; WL Woodward, Okla. 17-8; 7-18; 4-22—at Guthrie, Okla. Tournament; 4-26—*at Garden City (1); 4-30—*at Hays High; 5-11—*at Dodge City (1)
