BY BOO NEWSOME
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN
Martin County Cardinals swept Magoffin County in a doubleheader, securing back-to-back district wins 17-7 at home April 17 and 13-9 on the road Thursday.
Martin County coach TC Maynard feels good about the outcome.
“It was good to start district play with two wins,” Maynard said. “We showed some great potential and also learned some things that we need to focus on improving.”
Below is a recap of the action.
Game 1—Inez
The Cardinals dominated the Hornets 17-7 in the series opener April 17 at Cardinal Field in Inez.
The Hornets got on the board first with a run in the top of the first inning.
The Cardinals responded with two runs in the bottom of the first to take a 2-1 lead. They added a run in the second, followed by three runs in the third and seven in the fourth to take a commanding 13-1 lead.
Magoffin County went scoreless for three consecutive innings but mounted a comeback in the fifth with five runs to narrow the gap to 13-6.
The Cardinals scored in the fifth to make it 14-6.
Magoffin County managed to score one run in the top of the sixth inning, but the Cardinals responded with three runs in the bottom of the inning to take the mercy-rule win.
Ethan Mills earned the win for the Cardinals. He pitched four innings, giving up one run on one hit while striking out four and walking four.
Brayden Bailey took the loss for the Hornets.
The Cardinals had 10 hits, while the Hornets had five.
Brock Messer led Martin County with a double, two singles and two RBIs. Hunter Moore contributed two hits and two RBIs. Aiden Horn and Eli Mills each hit two singles and drove in a run. Chase Stacy hit a single and drove in one. Ryan Stephens and Dylan Hale drove in one run each.
Martin County had nine batters hit by a pitch.
Game 2—Salyersville
Martin County completed the sweep April 18 with a 13-9 victory over the Hornets in Salyersville.
The Cardinals ignited their offense with five runs in the top of the first inning. Aiden Horn led off with a single, followed by walks from Brock Messer and Damian Cheek. Chase Stacy was hit by a pitch and Collin Mills delivered a single.
Magoffin County responded with a rally of their own, scoring four runs.
The Cardinals added one run in both the second and third innings, extending the lead to 7-4.
The lead did not last as the Hornets scored three runs in the bottom of the third to tie the game 7-7.
Martin County added four to the score in the fourth behind doubles by Stacy and Stephens.
Magoffin County went scoreless for three straight innings, while Martin County scored two in the top of the sixth to widen the gap to 13-7.
The Hornets managed to score two runs in the bottom of the seventh.
Knox Maynard got the win on the mound. He allowed three runs on two hits, walking one and striking out three over two innings. Cayden Russell took the loss for Magoffin County, giving up four runs on six hits, walking four and striking out four over four innings.
The Cardinals tallied nine hits. Stephens hit a double and a single and drove in two runs. Stacy doubled, singled and drove in one. Aiden Horn recorded two hits and an RBI. Colin Mills singled and drove in a run. Cheek doubled while Eli Mills added a single.
Magoffin County tallied six hits.
