WESTPHALIA - It was a shaky finish, but the Blair Oaks Falcons did plenty in the first six innings to get the job done.
Blair Oaks wrapped up its 12-game stretch in a 13-day span Wednesday by beating the Fatima Comets 7-2.
"We got off to a good start," Blair Oaks coach Mike DeMilia said. "I was a little worried about that. We haven't gotten off to good starts lately."
Blair Oaks scored three runs on five hits in the top of the first inning against Fatima pitcher Gage Bax. Kamron Morriss had an RBI single and Ian Nolph hit a two-run double to left-center field to put the Falcons ahead 3-0.
"He was throwing it over the plate and we were aggressive," DeMilia said. "We got some good pitches to hit."
Fatima had a hot start itself Tuesday night in a 9-7 win against Class 5 No. 4 Hickman. The Comets scored eight runs in the first two innings against the Kewpies for their third straight win.
On Wednesday, they weren't able to score against Blair Oaks until the bottom of the seventh.
"Right now, we're just inconsistent," Fatima coach Brian Bax said. "We come out and beat one of the best Class 5 teams in the state, and today we came out flat."
Nolan Hair doubled down the left-field line in the second inning, scoring Lane Libbert to push the Blair Oaks lead to 4-0.
Since going 0-for-5 last Thursday in Blair Oaks' opening game of the Columbia Tournament against Kirksville, Hair had batted 9-for-22 from the leadoff spot. He reached base four times in five trips to the plate Wednesday.
"He was really struggling in the Capital City Invitational, putting a lot of pressure on himself," DeMilia said. "He's gotten back to the basics and is taking a nice, solid swing, getting good pitches to hit."
Meanwhile, Blair Oaks starting pitcher David Dell cruised through six innings, only allowing one runner to get into scoring position before the seventh.
"David's had some tough luck this year," DeMilia said. "We haven't always hit for him, we've played some shaky defense behind him. I think this helped him relax."
Blair Oaks scored two more runs in the fourth, including an RBI single from Parker Bax, and added its last run in the sixth on a sacrifice fly by Nolph that scored Morriss to make the score 7-0.
Dell kept his pitch count low at 74 pitches through six innings. He was three outs from a shutout, but Fatima began working the count against him in the seventh.
Gage Cunningham saw seven pitches in his at-bat, which ended in a flyout to left field. Jake Boyce finished his five-pitch at-bat with a single to left.
After Dawson Woehr hit a sacrifice fly to left to end the hopes of a shutout, Landry Bailey capped a seven-pitch at-bat with a double up the middle that ricocheted off Nolph's glove and bounced into left-center, scoring Boyce to make the score 7-2.
"We had a little fight at the end," Brian Bax said. " We can score, and have scored, seven or eight runs against Class 4 and 5 teams. It can happen fast when we do it.
"Right now, we'll take what we can get."
Bailey's hit ended Dell's night on the mound. In 6 innings, Dell allowed two runs on five hits with two walks and four strikeouts, throwing 99 pitches.
"He was getting tired," DeMilia said. "We wanted to get him the shutout if we could."
Nolph relieved Dell on the mound and ended the game two batters later with a groundout.
Parker Bax went 3-for-4 with three singles, while Morriss had a single and a double for Blair Oaks. Nolph also had a game-high three RBI.
Blair Oaks didn't strike out Wednesday in 37 trips to the plate.
"No strikeouts is huge because you constantly keep pressure on the defense," DeMilia said.
Gage Bax took the loss for the Comets. In five innings, he allowed six runs on eight hits and walked two. Ethan Backes pitched the last two innings, giving up one run on two hits and one walk.
Boyce had the only multi-hit game for Fatima, going 2-for-3 with two singles.
Fatima (6-10) plays Monday at Fulton.
"We came out flat today, but that aside, I think we're right where we need to be," Brian Bax said. "With our top three or four arms, we are going to compete or be as good as anyone in any district you can play in."
Blair Oaks (10-9), ranked No. 3 in Class 3, will enjoy a four-day break before playing Monday at Hallsville. During its busy two-week stretch, the Falcons posted a 5-7 record.
"Sometimes when you win, you want to keep it rolling," DeMilia said. "But I think it's a perfect time for us to get away from baseball for a little bit."
In Wednesday's JV game, Fatima defeated Blair Oaks 3-1. Luke Boyce had two hits for the Comets and also allowed just one run in four innings with one strikeout to earn the win on the mound.