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Keaton Ruthardt -
Cole Mungia -
Duncan Key -
Brett Pense -
Chase Hamilton
For three-straight innings, a pair of runners had to jog back to the dugout disappointed.
Senior pitcher Keaton Ruthardt pitched a complete game as the Deer Creek baseball team opened regionals Thursday afternoon with a 3-0 home win against Southmoore.
Deer Creek (32-3) did not have its best day at the plate, but Ruthardt made sure it did not matter.
Southmoore (16-20) stranded nine runners throughout the game.
Deer Creek coach Roland Baza said Ruthardt’s dominant performance is something he expects.
“I think he was great,” Baza said. “He’s been there. He’s been in some big situations for us. We have a lot of confidence in him. We knew he was going to go in and get the job done for us and set us up for game two.”
Ruthardt pitched all seven innings, surrendering four hits and two walks while striking out six. No SaberCat reached third base at any point.
Chase Younger started on the mound for Southmoore. He pitched 4 2/3 innings, allowing one earned run and three walks while striking out six. Rees Cantrell finished the game, allowing two hits and a run while striking out one.
Ruthardt said he felt good on the mound.
“After the third inning, I started dialing in,” Ruthardt said. “I had all my pitches working for me. Everything seemed to work out.”
The Antlers took the lead in the second with a pair of runs. Junior Duncan Key scored an unearned run after stealing second, reaching third on a throwing error, then stealing home thanks to senior Cole Mungia distracting the defense by stealing second. Mungia later scored thanks to an RBI single by senior Chase Hamilton.
Senior Bryce Logan gave Deer Creek some insurance with a sac fly in the top of the seventh, scoring senior pinch runner Nathan Burright.
The bottom of the lineup did most of the work for the Antlers. Three of Deer Creek’s four hits came from the six and eight spots in the lineup. Baza said Deer Creek is strong one through nine in the order.
“We have a lot of confidence in our lineup from top to bottom,” Baza said. “We’ve been there all year. We’ve done a good job picking each other up when the top half’s not getting it done like we should. We have a pretty balanced lineup that’s going to be able to produce at the bottom half. That’s why we’ve had the success we’ve had this year, just having the balance one through nine.”
Deer Creek will have an opportunity to earn a trip to state Friday.