Red Devils Drop Pair to Lyon on Friday

EUREKA, Ill. – The Eureka baseball team dropped the opening two games of its weekend series against Lyon on Friday, falling 13-3 in seven innings in game one and 13-4 in the second game.

GAME 1: Lyon 13, Eureka 3 (7 innings)             

Eureka jumped out to an early lead behind a strong start on the mound from Brayden Williams (Kansas, Okla./Salina), who held Lyon scoreless through the first three innings.

The Red Devils struck in the bottom of the first when Andrew Zimmerman (Eureka, Ill./Eureka) reached on an error to open the frame. Camden Smith (Florence, Ala./Florence) followed with a single to put runners on the corners before Grant Hackney (Morton, Ill./Morton) drove in the game's first run with a base hit. Conor Fitzpatrick (North Barrington, Ill./Barrington) added a sacrifice fly later in the inning to give Eureka a 2-0 advantage.

Eureka added to its lead in the third as Noah Company (Le Roy, Ill./Le Roy) drew a walk and Smith singled to once again put two aboard. Hackney delivered again with an RBI single to extend the lead to 3-0. Joshua Stanley (Huntsville, Texas/Huntsville) later worked a walk to load the bases, but the Scots escaped further damage.

Lyon responded in the fourth with three runs to even the score at 3-3 before breaking the game open with five runs in the fifth. The Scots added three runs in the sixth and two more in the seventh while holding Eureka scoreless to secure the run-rule victory.

Hackney led the Red Devils offensively, going 2-for-3 with two RBIs and a stolen base. Smith added a 2-for-4 effort with a run scored, while Zimmerman recorded Eureka's only other hit. Williams took the loss after allowing seven runs over 4.0 innings, striking out three.

GAME 2: Lyon 13, Eureka 4

The Scots carried their offensive momentum into game two, plating two runs in the top of the first inning.

Eureka answered in the bottom half as Camden Smith doubled with two outs before Hackney followed with an RBI single to cut the deficit to 2-1. Lyon gradually built its lead with runs in the third, fourth and fifth innings to make it 5-1.

After a scoreless stretch through the middle innings, Lyon added three runs in the eighth to push its advantage to 8-1. Eureka responded in the bottom of the inning when Zimmerman delivered a two-out single and Company followed with an RBI base hit. Smith then singled to bring home another run and trim the deficit to 8-3.

Lyon added five more runs in the ninth before Eureka plated its final run in the bottom half. Dylan Smith (Farina, Ill./South Central) led off with a pinch-hit double and later scored on a sacrifice fly from Fitzpatrick as the Red Devils fell 13-4.

Camden Smith paced the offense in game two, finishing 2-for-3 with a double, an RBI, and a run scored. Montrez West (Edwardsville, Ill./Edwardsville) added a 2-for-4 performance, while Hackney, Company, and Fitzpatrick each drove in a run. Dylan Smith went 1-for-1 with a double and a run scored.

Ethan McDonald (Cleveland, Okla./Mannford) started on the mound for Eureka, tossing 4.0 innings while allowing four runs on five hits with five strikeouts. Emilio Villanueva (Houston, Texas/Milby) provided 3.1 innings of relief, striking out five. Hayden McKenna (Sheridan, Ill./Marquette Academy) worked 0.2 scoreless innings with one strikeout, while Colby Minshew (Mabank, Texas/Dallas Christian) recorded the final out in the ninth, striking out the only batter he faced.

UP NEXT

Eureka will close out its three-game series against Lyon on Saturday at noon in Eureka.