Prairiland Patriots Home District Opener || Content Sponsored by: Weezy’s

Photo: Maddox Yaross

Photo Curtesy: Joanna McQueen

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The Prairiland Patriots’ strong pitching, solid defense, and timely hitting helped them blank the Lone Oak Buffaloes 10-0 in Tuesday’s district opener for both teams.

Patriot Madox Yaross scattered four hits and struck out 6 to get the win. The Prairiland defense backed its senior hurler with several spectacular plays to stop Lone Oak threats and preserve the shutout.

The Patriots jumped out to an early lead, scoring twice in the first inning. Catcher Austen Gordon led the game with a hard-hit double to left field. After a perfect sacrifice bunt by Mason Pusateri moved Gordon to second base, Yaross drove a single through the right side to plate him.

Wade Moore lined a single to left field to plate Adam Anderson, who had come in as a courtesy runner for Gordon and given Prairiland a 2-0 lead.

The Patriots broke the game open in the fourth inning, loading the bases courtesy of a couple of Buffaloes errors and a walked batter. Gordon was hit by a pitch, forcing in Jayden Whitaker, who had reached base earlier.

Pusateri doubled to left field, plating DJ Ledbetter and Jack Phillips. And when Lone Oak misplayed a Yaross bunt, Luke Rhoades and Pusateri both came around to score. The Patriots finished the inning with an 8-0 lead when junior Keeton Kinabrew’s sacrifice fly brought in Anderson for the sixth run of the inning.

Over the final two innings, the Patriots’ defense turned it up a notch to back Yaross and stop two Buffaloes scoring threats.

In the top of the 5th, Lone Oak’s Cason McBride drew one of the few bases on balls allowed by Yaross. With two outs, Riley Roden singled to right, where Patriots outfielder Dakota Berquist fired the ball to Kinabrew, who wheeled and relayed to catcher Gordon who applied the tag to McBride who attempted to score on the hit.

The Patriots tacked on another run in their half of the fifth when Ledbetter, Prairiland’s senior designated hitter, missed his first high school home run by just a few feet, driving a double to the base of the wall in left center to drive home Whitaker, who had earlier singled.

The top of the sixth belonged to Phillips, the Patriots freshman third baseman, and senior first baseman Fischer Morrison. On consecutive batters, Phillips made backhanded grabs of hard-hit balls toward the third base bag and fired to first where Morrison was equally adept with the glove, picking the throws off the dirt to record ground ball outs.

The Buffaloes got a runner on base with two outs when Moises Perez walked. But when Morgan Cruces beat out an infield single, Morrison came off the bag and caught Perez taking too big of a turnaround third base. The Patriot senior fired across the diamond to Phillips who applied the tag as Perez attempted to scramble back to the bag.

The Patriots ended the game via 10-run advantage in the 6th. Moore looped a pop fly that dropped just beyond the reach of Lone Oak’s shortstop, to plate Rhoades for the 10-0 win.

Yaross also paced the Patriots at the plate, collecting 3 hits and driving in 2 runs on the day. Pusateri also finished the game with a pair of RBIs for Prairiland.

The Patriots and Buffaloes square off again Friday night at 6:00 at Lone Oak.