Highlanders fight back for sweep at Weatherford

The McLennan Highlanders got a huge sweep on the road Wednesday, winning both games of the doubleheader with the Weatherford Coyotes.

Bailey Horn picked up the complete-game 4-2 win on the bump for the Highlanders in game one. 
Weatherford scored two runs in the bottom of the second to take the early lead. Landon Gray walked and Andrew Keefer singled. Jamie Lovell followed with a single to score Gray, and Keefer scored on a ground out by Dalton Dunn.

McLennan tied the game with back-to-back home runs by Josh Breaux and Brendan Venter in the top of the fourth.

The Highlanders scored two runs in the top of the sixth to secure the win. Chris Roller led off with a single and came in to score on Nic Motley's home run.

Game two was a clash of the hitters with the Highlanders coming out on top 14-9. Palmer Wenzel picked up the win on the mound.

McLennan scored one run in the second as Motley reached first safely on an error and scored on a double by Venter.

The Highlanders added three runs in the third. Joe Breaux tripled, Motley walked, and both scored on a three-run bomb by Venter.

Lovell put the Coyotes on the board with a solo shot in the fourth.

Weatherford added a run in the sixth as Gray tripled and scored on a single by Keefer.

McLennan scored a run in the sixth as Cole Haring singled, stole his way around to third and scored on a wild pitch.

The Highlanders extended their lead with two runs in the seventh. Motley walked and Josh Breaux singled. Motley stole third and scored on a wild pitch. Josh Breaux then scored on sacrifice fly by Griffin Paxton. 

Weatherford took the lead with seven runs in the seventh. Malik Jones tripled and scored on a double by Payton Rhodes. Rhodes moved to third on a ground out by Nicholas Evarts and scored on a single by Gray. Keefer singled and Blake Burns then doubled to score Gray and Keefer. Jake White followed with a two-run homer. Jake Michener then walked, moved to second on a McLennan error and scored on a double by Jones.

McLennan regained the lead with four runs in the eighth. Mario Vela drew a lead-off walk, George Callil singled and Chris Roller walked to load the bases. Motley followed with a grand slam. 

The Highlanders rounded out the scoring with three runs in the top of the ninth. Vela doubled to lead off and scored on a double by Joe Breaux. Roller singled and Joe Breaux scored on a wild pitch. Josh Breaux walked and Venter then singled to score Roller. 

"Today we got to see a little bit of everything in the doubleheader. The wind was blowing out, making the ballpark at times play very small. I'm really proud of our guys for going ahead and finishing it up to get the doubleheader sweep. I'm very proud of their efforts and of their competitiveness. It says a whole lot about who we are and about these kids' character," head coach Mitch Thompson said. 

"Horn was the story of game one, limiting Weatherford to four hits in the complete-game win. We beat a very good pitcher in Jake Lyons, 4-2, so that was a big game for us. We had several home runs in that ballgame. Then in game two, it was a game where we were in control, 7-2. But we kind of hit a little lull and Weatherford took us for seven runs in the seventh inning to take the lead. Our guys showing back up and scoring seven runs in the eighth and ninth innings combined just shows the kind of character that they have. I'm very proud of those wins."

"Motley and Venter were huge for us today. The nice thing about this is that we have different guys stepping up every day. When we are clicking on all cylinders, we are going to be very good. Today is another good step in the right direction."

McLennan 4, Weatherford 2
McLennan 000 202 0 – 4 7 1
Weatherford 020 000 0 – 2 4 0
Bailey Horn and Josh Breaux. Jake Lyons and Landon Gray. WP: Horn; LP: Lyons. Leading hitters – McLennan: Nic Motley (1-3, HR, 2 RBI), Josh Breaux (1-3, HR, RBI) and Brendan Venter (1-3, HR, RBI); Weatherford: Andrew Keefer (1-3, 2B), Jamie Lovell (2-3, RBI) and Dalton Dunn (1-3, RBI). Record: McLennan 29-7 (10-3).

McLennan 14, Weatherford 9
McLennan 013 001 243 – 14 12 1
Weatherford 000 110 700 – 9 18 1
Kyrell Miller, Logan Freeman (6), Palmer Wenzel (7) and Nic Motley. Reagan MacDoanld, Toby Davis (4), Austin Cornish (7), Tyler Perez (8), Dylan Smith (8), Sean Townsend (9), Garrett Hale (9) and Jake White. WP: Wenzel; LP: Perez. Leading hitters – McLennan: Joe Breaux (2-6, 2B, 3B, RBI), Nic Motley (1-4, HR, 4 RBI), Brendan Venter (3-4, 2B, HR, 5 RBI), Mario Vela (1-2, 2B) and Griffin Paxton (1-1, RBI); Weatherford: Malik Jones (2-4, 2B, 3B, RBI), Payton Thodes (3-4, 2 2B, RBI), Landon Gray (2-5, 3B, RBI), Andrew Keefer (3-5, RBI), Jamie Lovell (2-4, HR, RBI), Blake Burns (3-5, 2B, 2 RBI) and Jake White (1-5, HR, 2 RBI). Record: McLennan 30-7 (11-3).