BRITTNI MCCOY
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN
INEZ — Martin County’s baseball team opened the 2026 season against a pair of tough opponents last week. The Cards dropped games to Hazard and Knox Central to begin the year 0-2.
The Cardinals started the season March 18 at Cardinal Park. Hazard used a big sixth inning to pull away for a 13-4 win. Martin County then traveled to Knox Central on Saturday and fell 12-0 in five innings after the Panthers exploded for eight runs in the opening frame.
Against Hazard, the Cardinals stayed in the fight until the Bulldogs broke things open with a nine-run sixth inning.
Martin County finished with six hits in the opener, led by Caige Presley, who went 2-for-3 with two RBIs. Knox Maynard added a double and a walk while going 1-for-2. Noah Bowens went 1-for-3 with an RBI. Tyler Stacy, Dylan Hale and Hunter Moore each added a hit. Hale scored a run and stole a base, Moore scored once and drew a walk, and Stacy also came around to score.
On the mound, Maynard turned in one of Martin County’s strongest outings of the night. He worked five innings and allowed no hits and one earned run while striking out three on 64 pitches.
Stacy threw 1 1/3 innings, allowed two hits and three earned runs while striking out one and walking two. Presley gave up four hits and four earned runs, and Skyler Greene allowed one hit and five runs, four of them earned.
Martin County had a much tougher time settling in Saturday at Knox Central.
The Panthers took control immediately with an eight-run first inning and never let the Cardinals recover. Martin County was limited to three hits in the loss, with Hale, Bowens and Maynard each collecting one.
Aidan Mann pitched three innings for the Cardinals. He allowed four hits and four earned runs while striking out two on 65 pitches. Hale worked one inning in relief, allowing four hits and eight runs, three earned, while striking out one.
Martin County will host East Carter at 6:30 p.m. March 25. The Cards will travel to Prestonsburg on March 27. The squad will play in the Frank Bloom Invitational at Russell in a doubleheader March 28. The Cards return home to take on Boyd County on March 30 and will travel for a rematch March 31.