WARDSVILLE, Mo. - The first play of the game was a bad omen for the Blair Oaks Falcons.
Fulton's Luke Gray hit a towering infield pop fly that traveled roughly 50 feet down the first-base line and fell to the ground untouched. The error seemed to dictate the rest of Monday's game at the Falcon Athletic Complex.
"Fulton ran with it," Blair Oaks coach Travis Henke said after the Hornets won 11-3 against the Falcons. "We just couldn't overcome that."
The Hornets, ranked No. 9 in Class 4, scored two unearned runs in the top of the first inning, with the second run scoring on a throwing error.
By the halfway point of the game, Fulton led 5-0, but Henke said that first play still set the tone for the entire game.
"We had a long weekend, don't get me wrong, guys battled all weekend," Henke said. "We were a little tired, but that's not an excuse. We need to come out and play every day."
After adding a run in the second, the Hornets scored two more runs in the top of the fourth. Alec Fleetwood, Fulton's No. 8 hitter, squared around to bunt, then pulled his bat back and smashed a two-run home run over the left-center field fence to give the Hornets a 5-0 lead.
Fulton's Nos. 7-9 hitters reached base 10 times in their 12 plate appearances and scored eight runs. Going back to the top of the order, Gray reached base all five times.
"They got guys on base and bunted them over a lot," Henke said. "They scored quite a few times just out of bunting guys over, and they took advantage of us having some free passes and then hit the ball well."
Fulton pitcher Taylor Nelson kept Blair Oaks batters off-balanced through four innings, allowing just one run on an RBI bloop single by Maclaine McCarter in the fourth inning. Nelson struck out four batters and scattered six hits.
"He has kind of that weird delivery where he's straight over the top and he kind of jumps at you," Henke said.
Blair Oaks had a scoring opportunity in the bottom of the fifth with the bases loaded and no outs, but Fulton relief pitcher Evan Gray escaped the jam with a double play hit back to him followed by a groundout.
"We could never really find a break," Henke said. "We hit balls hard and couldn't get it done."
Fulton (5-4) scored four runs in the fifth and two more in the seventh to take an eight-run lead.
Blair Oaks scored twice in the bottom of the sixth with a solo home run by Jason Rackers and an RBI double from Tyler Swehla. Rackers, Swehla and Thomas Verslues each had two hits for the Falcons.
Colton Hoelscher, who saved two games during the Capital City Invitational, took the loss Monday for Blair Oaks. He pitched 4 1/3 innings and gave up nine runs on five hits with three walks and six strikeouts.
Verslues finished the game on the mound, walking three and striking out one in 22/3 innings.
"Thomas Verslues did a great job tonight," Henke said. "It was the first time he pitched since our Jamboree."
This weekend could be an all-hands-on-deck situation for Falcons' pitching staff. Blair Oaks (6-3) will play Thursday at Hickman to open the Columbia Tournament, then play Friday against Battle and Hallsville at Battle.
By the end of the tournament Saturday, Blair Oaks could play as many as 11 games in a 12-day stretch.
"You have to work around it and you have to have guys step up," Henke said. "They may not pitch all the time, but they're going to have to come in and throw some innings."
Fulton also won the JV game 2-1. Webb Villmer had two hits for the Falcons and Parker Bax drove in a run. Tyler Gish struck out seven batters in four innings for Blair Oaks, which dropped to 1-2.