MONROE - The conclusion of the pitcher's duel between Monroe and Milton will have to wait for another day after the Badger South Conference game was suspended due to darkness tied at 1 in the bottom of the ninth inning Tuesday.
The game will be picked up with one out and Monroe freshman Jared Dillon on second base in the ninth inning when the Cheesemakers play at Milton April 27.
"The umpire felt it was unsafe to continue," Monroe coach Dustin Huffman said. "The last ball that was hit it was pretty hard to see. It's unfortunate because we had a runner on second."
Monroe senior Hogan Edwards pitched seven innings and gave up one run on three hits. He struck out seven, walked four and hit one batter. The only run he gave up came when Milton's Chase Davis smoked an RBI double to right in the first to give the Red Hawks a 1-0 lead.
"He (Edwards) threw really good, and we expect that out of him," Huffman said. "He had nice command of his curveball. He battled through some adversity with some extra base runners (stolen bases), and the mound is not in the greatest shape right. He's our No. 1 for a reason. If he can just go out and keep doing that we will be very happy."
Monroe (1-0) answered in the bottom of the first. Senior Cole Murray singled to center and stole second. Edwards then smashed an RBI double to left to tie the game at 1.
Milton senior starting pitcher Dakota Cude was just as impressive as Edwards. Cude pitched seven innings and gave up one run on five hits. He struck out five and walked just one.
"Dakota is a smart pitcher," Huffman said. "He throws four different pitches, and he can get them all around the dish. I'm not sure if our four underclassmen have seen a pitcher like that before. Nick Bansley hit one right on the screws, but it was right at them. I thought we did a pretty good job of putting the bat on the ball considering how much off-speed (pitches) he threw. It's the next part of the maturation process is having someone step up and get a big hit."
Murray, at second base, made a leaping catch that he turned into a double play with two on to end the third.
Edwards picked off a runner from second in the fifth to preserve the tie. Edwards threw to Murray who tossed a perfect strike to third baseman Dagon Rach who tagged out Milton's Payden Belk at third.
The Red Hawks had a golden scoring opportunity in the top of the eighth, but Monroe senior relief pitcher Brad Ripp pitched out of the jam. With runners on second and third base and one out, Ripp worked out of the jam. He induced Cude to ground out to first. Huffman then had him intentionally walk Griffin Allen to load the bases. Ripp then struck out Jerry Lipke with the bases loaded.
Edwards was looking forward to his teammates winning the game with a walk-off hit in the ninth.
"I was just hoping we could finish the game," Edwards said. "It's never fun to have the game called and have your teammates called back to finish the game. Hopefully, when we get there we can take it to them and finish out the game strong."
The game will be picked up with one out and Monroe freshman Jared Dillon on second base in the ninth inning when the Cheesemakers play at Milton April 27.
"The umpire felt it was unsafe to continue," Monroe coach Dustin Huffman said. "The last ball that was hit it was pretty hard to see. It's unfortunate because we had a runner on second."
Monroe senior Hogan Edwards pitched seven innings and gave up one run on three hits. He struck out seven, walked four and hit one batter. The only run he gave up came when Milton's Chase Davis smoked an RBI double to right in the first to give the Red Hawks a 1-0 lead.
"He (Edwards) threw really good, and we expect that out of him," Huffman said. "He had nice command of his curveball. He battled through some adversity with some extra base runners (stolen bases), and the mound is not in the greatest shape right. He's our No. 1 for a reason. If he can just go out and keep doing that we will be very happy."
Monroe (1-0) answered in the bottom of the first. Senior Cole Murray singled to center and stole second. Edwards then smashed an RBI double to left to tie the game at 1.
Milton senior starting pitcher Dakota Cude was just as impressive as Edwards. Cude pitched seven innings and gave up one run on five hits. He struck out five and walked just one.
"Dakota is a smart pitcher," Huffman said. "He throws four different pitches, and he can get them all around the dish. I'm not sure if our four underclassmen have seen a pitcher like that before. Nick Bansley hit one right on the screws, but it was right at them. I thought we did a pretty good job of putting the bat on the ball considering how much off-speed (pitches) he threw. It's the next part of the maturation process is having someone step up and get a big hit."
Murray, at second base, made a leaping catch that he turned into a double play with two on to end the third.
Edwards picked off a runner from second in the fifth to preserve the tie. Edwards threw to Murray who tossed a perfect strike to third baseman Dagon Rach who tagged out Milton's Payden Belk at third.
The Red Hawks had a golden scoring opportunity in the top of the eighth, but Monroe senior relief pitcher Brad Ripp pitched out of the jam. With runners on second and third base and one out, Ripp worked out of the jam. He induced Cude to ground out to first. Huffman then had him intentionally walk Griffin Allen to load the bases. Ripp then struck out Jerry Lipke with the bases loaded.
Edwards was looking forward to his teammates winning the game with a walk-off hit in the ninth.
"I was just hoping we could finish the game," Edwards said. "It's never fun to have the game called and have your teammates called back to finish the game. Hopefully, when we get there we can take it to them and finish out the game strong."
