The Festus Tigers have a busy week on the schedule, and just over halfway through, they’re getting it done. They started off a bit rocky, falling to Webster Groves on Wednesday 7-2, but rebounded in a big way with 13-1 and 8-0 victories over the DeSoto Dragons in a home-and-home series on Thursday and Friday.
Sadly, Wednesday’s loss to the Statesmen was on Senior Night, but despite the poor end result, Tyler Bizzle, Ian Brown, Jackson Gross, Wyatt Huskey, Brayden Montgomery, Nate Moore, Henry Roux and Cole Skaggs were all honored just the same. Congrats to the eight Seniors on truly impressive careers that helped make Festus Baseball what it is today.
And a big part of that is blowing out opponents. Case in point; the Tigers really laid into the Dragons the past two days, and found the perfect blend of elite pitching and a potent offense.
One Thursday they traveled to DeSoto and got the jump on the Dragons early. A run in the first on a Hayden Bates sac fly set the tone, and then the Tigers unloaded for five runs in the second and six in the third. The second featured RBI doubles from Gross and Bates that plated three of the five runs and Huskey and Brady Nolen drove in the other two with run-scoring singles.
Gross had another RBI double in the third and Nolen struck again with another base-knock that plated a run. Jeremiah Cunningham and Bizzle each had RBI base hits in the inning as well, which was great news for Mason Schirmer, who pitched a complete-game three-hitter. He allowed just one run and fanned seven in the 13-1 victory.
Nolen had a career day at the plate with a 4-for-4 effort that included three runs scored, three RBI and two steals. Bates had just one official hit, but drove in four, and Montgomery and Gross each had a pair of hits. Both of Gross’ hits were doubles and he drove in two.
The next day the Tigers welcomed the Dragons to town, but they were not kind hosts to their guests. Festus wasted no time taking the lead with a pair of runs in the first inning on a Schirmer single, which got a little assistance from a defensive miscue.
Three innings later the Tigers added to their lead with RBI singles from Bates and Nolen to go up 4-0. Gross plated another run in the fifth with a base knock before Schirmer blasted a double to center to score two more in the sixth. That made it 8-0 and was more than enough for Montgomery, who cruised through six shutout innings on the mound. He allowed just one hit and walked three against six Ks for the win.
Schirmer had the big stick in this one with a 3-for-4 performance that featured four RBI. Nolen, Bates and Montgomery each had a pair of hits to add to their season stats.
The back-to-back wins gave the Tigers five victories in their last six games and have them playing some of their best baseball at the right time of the season. They have a double header on Saturday and then one more regular season game before the District Tournament starts.
