SOUTH WAYNE - Pitching, hitting and defense wins games. Monticello's baseball team did all three Monday afternoon against Black Hawk on its way to a 6-2 win.
"Offensively, (and) defensively we played great," Ponies coach Jason Pinnow said. "This was one of our most complete games all year."
Monticello (3-4, 2-2) sent southpaw ace Brandon "Bubba" Holz to the mound; Holz responded by throwing a six-hitter with nine strikeouts.
"Bubba pitched great. He's been great all year. He is consistently throwing strikes," Pinnow said.
The Ponies opened the game the way every team would want; leadoff man Tyler Ritschard singled and moved his way around the bases to score.
Black Hawk was not as lucky. Holz struck out two in the first inning, and the only Warrior to reach base was Shane Jackson, who hit a dying quail into a puddle in no-man's-land in shallow right field.
"We didn't get as many hits as well as I liked, but overall we're progressing from where we started this year," Black Hawk coach Lance Ray said.
Monticello scored two runs in the second off of Warriors starter Payton Schliem. Holz hit an infield single, stole second and third, and Luke Kolasch doubled to deep right, missing a home run by inches. Kolasch swiped third and scored on a ground out by Mike Elzen.
In the bottom of the second, Ponies first baseman Casey Klossner looked like a gold glover in the field. With a runner on, T.J. Adams hit a hard skipper towards the gap on the right side of the infield. Klossner dove, and with a fully extended body, snagged the ball. A flip throw to Holz beat out Adams and the threat was erased.
Black Hawk again threatened to score in the bottom of the third after the Ponies made it 4-0. With runners on first and third and one out, Jackson lined a hard hop to first. Klossner took the initial out at the bag and hurled home in time to get Jake Meier at the plate.
"Casey has been our vocal leader all year. He's hitting the ball hard and defense only helps us. Making plays like that just spreads throughout the infield," Pinnow said.
Trailing 6-0 in the fifth, the Warriors finally got on the scoreboard. Holz loaded the bases with one out and Schliem hit a seeing eye single through the right side of the infield, driving in a pair. But, Holz recovered and struck out the next two batters to limit the damage.
"We were hitting the ball and getting runners on base, putting pressure on them. I would have liked to have scored about two more runs that inning. We had them on the ropes," Ray said.
Black Hawk, though struggling in the win column, has come a long way this season.
"We had a couple of bad errors, like a missed catch. Payton pitched a great game, and without the unearned runs it was only a 3-2 or 4-2 game," Ray said. "We're coming along. We're making it more competitive every game. We keep progressing. We're getting good hitting and good defense at times. Now we just need to put them together."
Klossner and Schliem were the only hitters with two hits.
"Offensively, (and) defensively we played great," Ponies coach Jason Pinnow said. "This was one of our most complete games all year."
Monticello (3-4, 2-2) sent southpaw ace Brandon "Bubba" Holz to the mound; Holz responded by throwing a six-hitter with nine strikeouts.
"Bubba pitched great. He's been great all year. He is consistently throwing strikes," Pinnow said.
The Ponies opened the game the way every team would want; leadoff man Tyler Ritschard singled and moved his way around the bases to score.
Black Hawk was not as lucky. Holz struck out two in the first inning, and the only Warrior to reach base was Shane Jackson, who hit a dying quail into a puddle in no-man's-land in shallow right field.
"We didn't get as many hits as well as I liked, but overall we're progressing from where we started this year," Black Hawk coach Lance Ray said.
Monticello scored two runs in the second off of Warriors starter Payton Schliem. Holz hit an infield single, stole second and third, and Luke Kolasch doubled to deep right, missing a home run by inches. Kolasch swiped third and scored on a ground out by Mike Elzen.
In the bottom of the second, Ponies first baseman Casey Klossner looked like a gold glover in the field. With a runner on, T.J. Adams hit a hard skipper towards the gap on the right side of the infield. Klossner dove, and with a fully extended body, snagged the ball. A flip throw to Holz beat out Adams and the threat was erased.
Black Hawk again threatened to score in the bottom of the third after the Ponies made it 4-0. With runners on first and third and one out, Jackson lined a hard hop to first. Klossner took the initial out at the bag and hurled home in time to get Jake Meier at the plate.
"Casey has been our vocal leader all year. He's hitting the ball hard and defense only helps us. Making plays like that just spreads throughout the infield," Pinnow said.
Trailing 6-0 in the fifth, the Warriors finally got on the scoreboard. Holz loaded the bases with one out and Schliem hit a seeing eye single through the right side of the infield, driving in a pair. But, Holz recovered and struck out the next two batters to limit the damage.
"We were hitting the ball and getting runners on base, putting pressure on them. I would have liked to have scored about two more runs that inning. We had them on the ropes," Ray said.
Black Hawk, though struggling in the win column, has come a long way this season.
"We had a couple of bad errors, like a missed catch. Payton pitched a great game, and without the unearned runs it was only a 3-2 or 4-2 game," Ray said. "We're coming along. We're making it more competitive every game. We keep progressing. We're getting good hitting and good defense at times. Now we just need to put them together."
Klossner and Schliem were the only hitters with two hits.
