The Jefferson City Jays came close to playing their third extra-inning game in two days Saturday. Blake Terry was in favor of just playing seven.
The senior pitcher stranded the tying run at first base to finish off a complete-game effort in a 2-1 victory against the Hickman Kewpies in the Capital City Invitational championship game at Vivion Field.
It was a much different outcome than the first time these two teams met this season. Hickman ended that one early by scoring 10 runs in the fifth inning in a 13-0 win March 19 at Vivion Field.
"Blake got his first pitch over whether it be a curevball, a slider, fastball, and then he was able to just work from there," Jays coach Kyle Lasley said. "He started pitching backwards to guys in the second and third time through the order. He just basically controlled the game."
The Kewpies tripled their number of hits in the seventh as Gage Slaughter dropped a double down the line in right field, advanced to third on a sacrifice fly and scored on Francisco Villarreal's line-drive single to center field to cut the deficit to 2-1.
But Villarreal never went past first base as a flyout and fielder's choice closed out the Jays' sixth straight win.
"We had 100 percent confidence that (Terry) was going to go out there and get us three outs," Lasley said. "We had a guy ready just in case, but we knew that he could get the job done."
Terry struck out three, walked two and hit a batter.
While the Jays did commit two errors behind Terry, the infield recorded nine outs on ground balls and second baseman Jeremy Parks, a sophomore, chased after a couple pop-ups in shallow right field.
"Jeremy made some really good plays at second base," Lasley said. "(Shortstop) Taylor (Hopkins) made some good plays. The outfield was tracking down balls. It was just a well played game."
There was some miscommunication in the outfield in the sixth when right fielder Wyatt Fischer and center fielder Tucker Schwartz collided on a fly ball, which Fischer held onto.
"It was just kind of one of those last-second things," Lasley said. "Wyatt made a good catch and got it back in."
That play kept a Kewpie runner at first base and a groundout ended the inning.
The only time Hickman got a runner past second other than the seventh was when the Kewpies drew a walk and a hit by pitch before a double steal put runners at second and third with two outs.
The 2-0 lead the Jays got the inning before remained as a groundout to second base ended the threat.
Joe Hoerchler drove in the game's first run on a double to left field to drive in Schwartz, who led off with a hit by pitch and advanced to second on Dawson Schuemann's single.
Hoerchler accounted for seven hits, five RBI and two walks during the four-game tournament.
"He's been our hottest hitter for the last two weeks," Lasley said. "A lot of guys talk about averages and stuff like that. I'm not a huge stats guy. He's just had a lot of quality at-bats."
Schuemann scored when Jack Shinkle grounded out to make it 2-0.
The Jays finished with four hits off Hickman's Max Bates, who struck out four and walked one.
"Offensively, it is what it is at times," Lasley said. "You've just got to battle and fight and Joe came up bog with the big hit."
The Jays tried to add to their lead with a little finesse in the fifth. Fischer led off with a walk, Taylor Hopkins reached on a bunt single and Dawson Schulte moved over the runners with a sacrifice bunt.
However, the runners wouldn't move any further as the inning ended with a pair of groundouts.
"We're going to have to do that every once in a while," Lasley said. "If the big game is not working you've got to go to the short game."
Jefferson City (11-4) will play its fifth game in five days at Vivion Field on Tuesday when the Jays host the Battle Spartans. First pitch is scheduled for 5 p.m.