Excelsior Springs coach Aaron Holst, right, high fives junior Conner Creason after his RBI single in the bottom of the fifth inning against Odessa on Thursday, April 28 at Excelsior Springs High School. (Photo by Bryce Mereness)
Tigers senior Logan Scott went to the mound with loads of confidence entering a Missouri River Valley Conference tilt on Thursday, April 28 at Excelsior Springs High School.
After putting up three straight zeros to start the game, his confidence grew in an eventual 3-1 win against Odessa.
“Going into today I felt like I had my best stuff,” Scott said. “I had confidence in our defense. It’s really mainly about throwing strikes constantly and letting our defense work. It’s what we do and how we play best. ”
The win marked the third straight for the Tigers – a season best. The streak began with a 2-1 win against Winnetonka in the Northland Invitational on Friday, April 22, which was another dominant start from the tall right-hander. An 11-1 win against district foe Van Horn followed to mark the third time the Tigers won consecutive games.
“Three in a row constitutes a streak,” Tigers coach Aaron Holst said. “We’ve been talking about that. I feel like we have been playing well. We were so close here in the last couple of weeks like we were going to get on (a winning streak).”
Scott allowed just three hits on the day and struck out three as he relied heavily on the Tigers infield defense. For the most part the defensive unit played perfectly, aside from a first-inning error.
“The defense has progressed so much as the season’s gone on,” Scott said. “It’s been great to watch and great to see. We’re starting to take shape as a winning ball club. I love the way the defense has played behind us. Throughout the season we’ve really learned to trust each other.”
Excelsior Springs got on the board first with a pair of hits. Sophomore outfielder Justice Barger led off the frame with a single to left field. After a sacrifice bunt and a groundout, senior catcher Bryce Mawby drove Barger home with a triple deep into the right field corner.
To read the rest of this story, please see the Tuesday, May 3 issue of The Excelsior Springs Standard