The Mid-Prairie Golden Hawk baseball team scored a pair of single run victories Monday over the visitors from West Branch. Game one went the Golden Hawks way by a 4-3 score. Both teams sent their aces to the hill with Mid-Prairie starter Brooks Weber outdueling Bears hurler Garrett Sotzen. The Hawks broke through in the third with three runs, keyed by a two-RBI single for Cecil Kelley that scored Weber and Logan Pacha, and an RBI double for Kale Miller that brought home Kelley. The Bears got one in top of four to make it 3-1. The Mid-Prairie response was a tally in the fourth when Bronx Miller drove in Lenox Miller. Staked to a three run advantage, Weber went the distance, striking out 13 Bears, including the final out of the game to finish the one-run-win.
In the nightcap, it was a Golden Hawk walk-off in a slug-fest 12-11. Both teams rode the see-saw back and forth with the Hawks up 2-0 after one, West Branch answered with five in the second, only to see the Hawks return the favor in the bottom half to lead 7-5. The offense continued to pile up with each team trading body blows through the mid to late innings. The Golden Hawks were on top 8-6 after four and 11-10 after five. Mid-Prairie pushed West Branch to the brink, down to their final out twice, the Bears bounced back to tie the game and force a bottom of the seventh. In the final at bat, Mid-Prairie walked off the field a winner when Koy Grout’s base hit drove in Cecil Kelley and set off a celebration. Following the twin bill, Golden Hawks of the game Brooks Weber and Koy Grout talked about the wins and their role in the night
Grout said, “The last couple of batters (before me) he was throwing first pitch curveball, so I was sitting on it. He threw another on the next pitch and it was perfect! (When I hit it) I just thought, ‘I hope Cecil (Kelley) gets home’! I just saw all my teammates running toward me (on the field) and congratulating me. I was happy so I threw my helmet as high as I could. I liked how we kept hitting and kept our heads up.”
Weber continued, “My off-speed was working tonight, and Logan (Pacha) called a great game for me behind the plate. I came back in after the sixth and I knew I could go back out there and give it one more inning at least. (My favorite strikeout) was probably the last one at the end of the game. They came up with the top of the order in a one-run game and to get that last strikeout was a big part of the game. These were big ones tonight. It was a team effort. Everyone was doing their job at the plate. Everyone was swinging really well.”
Game two featured 20 free bases total between the two sides. The Hawks had big nights from Grout with three hits, a run scored and the game-winning RBI. Kale Miller drove in three and scored twice on a pair of hits. Tommy Miller and Bronx Miller had a pair of RBI each, with Bronx Miller scoring three times. He also recorded the win on the hill, working the seventh with a run, a walk and strikeout. The sweep moves Mid-Prairie to 4-4 on the year, ahead of their game with the Bears, this time on the road, Thursday.