The numbers game hasn't seem to catch up to the Harrisburg baseball team, despite its blistering start to the season.
Perhaps it has little to do with the 16-0 victory the Bulldogs handed Mt. Carmel Wednesday, but more about the way Harrisburg has jumped out to a 16-0 start with no sense of slowing down.
Harrisburg has just been dominant this spring, posting its second straight shutout Wednesday and now has five in the month of May. It's the eighth straight win this month and the Bulldogs have outscored opponents 93-6. Overall, the No. 8th ranked team in the state of Illinois and still No. 1 in Class 2A according to maxpreps.com has outscored the opposition 171-17.
It was much of the same as the Bulldogs made quick work of the Aces ace Kaleb Applebey. The 6-foot-7 righty had a handful of Major League Baseball scouts on hand, but was touched for four runs in the first inning and eventually left in the second after suffering a hamstring injury.
Applebey gave up five runs (four earned) on three hits, while striking out three and walking one.
On the flip side, Harrisburg's Noah Boon was brilliant on the bump as the senior moved to 5-0 on the year with a no-hit performance. Boon struck out five over four innings and gave way to Peyton Arnold in the fifth, who struck out two.
Boon now carries a 1.78 ERA as he has struck out a team-high 27 of the 66 batters he has faced.
Harrisburg jumped on Mt. Carmel early as Javie Beal led off with a single and later scored on a Colby Morse single to right field. Following a Krayton Morse double to right field, both Colby Morse and Riley King (pinch running for Krayton Morse) both scored on a passed ball. With one out, Ben Brombaugh was hit by a pitch and then scored after stealing second, advancing to third on a wild pitch and stole home.
In the second inning, the Bulldogs went back to work as Beal reached via walk and scored on a Colby Morse ground ball, which resulted in an error and in the third inning, Cameron Ande singled past third, scoring Brombaugh. A Jackson Pittman single to center drove in two runs, scoring Andrew Bittle and Ande, while Colby Morse single to center, scored Luke Miller.
Harrisburg was able to put the game away with a seven-run fourth inning as the Bulldogs lumber company pounded out 12 hits on the afternoon.
Colby Morse was 3-for-4 with a team-high three RBI and two runs scored, while Krayton Morse and Beal both had multiple hits. Krayton Morse went 2-for-4 with an RBI and run scored, while Beal scored a co-team-high three runs and finished with a pair of RBI.
Blake Stacey, Brombaugh, And, King and Pittman all had one hit as Pittman had two RBI and Stacey drove in one run. Bittle, King and Miller all scored two runs as Ande scored one.
Harrisburg is scheduled to play at West Frankfort Friday and will travel to Marion Saturday in a matchup of two unbeatens, slated for an 11 a.m. start.
Spyder Dann covers prep and college sports for the Southern Illinois LOCAL Media Group. Follow him on Twitter: @spydieshooter.
