March 18, 2024

Indians baseball competitive, fall just short in SCC loss

Clarke’s baseball team knows it has a chance anytime pitcher Gable Reece is on the mound.

Reece kept the Indians in the game against Chariton on May 25, but the Chargers delivered a late rally that was too much for Clarke to overcome in a 3-1 loss in South Central Conference play.

“Anytime Reece is on the mound, we know he’s going to throw strikes,” said Clarke coach Justin Stoulil. “We know what we’re going to get out of him.”

The Indians struck first in the second. Billy Otto walked, took second on a passed ball and scored on Conner Deutsch’s base hit.

The Indians kept the lead until the fourth when Chariton tied it up with a run on two hits. Reece escaped unscathed, leaving two runners on base.

Otto singled and took second on a passed ball in the fourth, then moved to third on a Deutsch base hit, but the Indians couldn’t come through.

Clarke had threats in the fifth and sixth as well. In the sixth, Marshall Morrison doubled with one out, but was left stranded.

“We had runners on base a few times and couldn’t get them in,” Stoulil said.

Morrision’s hit was a good harbinger of things to come for the freshman.

“We’re expecting good things from him,” Stoulil said. “He’s still adjusting to things.”

Chariton finally got to Reece in the seventh, scoring twice courtesy of a walk, a fielders choice ground ball and a base hit.

The Indians went in order in the bottom of the seventh.

Still, it was a good first step in the home opener.

“We improved from last night (a 10-8 loss at Mount Ayr),” Stoulil said. “We had a much better game.