Baseball Bears Win 3 More; Host Thayer Today for ‘Senior Night’

The Ava High School Baseball Bears won three varsity games during the past week, stretching their season record to 9-3 and going to 5-0 in conference play.

The Bears will host Thayer today (Thursday) in SCA action in hopes of protecting their unblemished SCA record. The conference season will wrap up next Monday at Houston.

Today’s game with Thayer has been designated Senior Night, with the senior players to be recognized before the start of the game. Game time is 4:30 and Senior Night activities will begin at about 4:15.

In a shuffled schedule arrangement to make up a rainout, the Bears hosted both Mtn. Grove and Seymour in a varsity double-header last Thursday.

The Bears defeated Mtn. Grove 7-2 in SCA play, then downed Seymour 6-4 in non-conference action.

On Monday of this week the Bears beat Willow Spring 1-0 in a pitcher’s duel that was won by Ava senior Kody Kutz who went the distance.

Senior Zach Leonard went 4-for-4 against Mtn. Grove, drove in two runs and scored a run for the Bears. Freshman shortstop Chase Gastineau was 3-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored, and Ben Loge drove in two runs for the Bears while also pitching seven innings and striking out 11 Panther batters.

Leonard continued to hit the ball in the Seymour game, going 3-for-4 at the plate with two doubles, scoring a run and driving in one run.

Cody Huff was 2-for-2 and scored a run and Dillon Adams had an RBI triple in his only plate appearance.

Freshman Shannon Porter entered the game as a pinch runner Monday and scored the only run of the game as Ava slipped past Willow Springs 1-0.

Kutz struck out 10 Willow batters and allowed only one walk in a strong 4-hits performance for Coach Rex Sawyer.

Cooper Emerich and Jeff Smalley had Ava’s only hits of the game. It was Emerich’s solid single to left field that drove Porter in from third base. Porter advanced to third when Willow Springs mishandled the throw on a pickoff move to second in the second inning.