The No. 3 McLennan Highlanders pounded the Vernon Chaparrals in Wednesday's conference doubleheader, picking up two run-rule victories to move to 34-7 on the season and 15-3 in conference play.
Bailey Horn picked up the complete-game 13-2 victory on the mound for the Highlanders in game one.
McLennan began the scoring with one run in the top of the first as Joe Breaux was hit by the pitch and came around to score on two Vernon errors.
Vernon tied the game with a run in the bottom of the first as Hayden Jaco walked, moved to second on a single by Marco Rivera and scored on a ground out by David Pewenofkit.
The Highlanders broke the game open with nine runs in the third. Chris Roller was hit by the pitch and Nic Motley doubled. Josh Breaux followed with a three-run homer. Brendan Venter followed that with a solo home run. Griffin Paxton walked and Brock Morrison doubled. Paxton was thrown out at the plate. Cole Haring then singled to score Morrison. Haring moved to second on a sacrifice bunt by George Callil and scored on a single by Joe Breaux. Roller then drew a walk. Motley followed with a three-run homer of his own.
The Chaparrals' second run came in the bottom of the third as Trey Bigford singled, advanced to second on a balk, moved to third on a ground out by Sawyer Toole and scored on a double by Jaco.
Griffin Paxton added to the McLennan lead with a solo home run in the fourth.
The Highlanders sealed the run-rule with two runs in the top of the fifth. Josh Breaux led off with a double and Venter was hit by the pitch. Paxton singled to score Josh Breaux, and Venter scored on a wild pitch.
McLennan continued to dominate Vernon in game two with Kyrell Miller picking up the 17-6 win on the mound.
The Highlanders scored two runs in the first as Joe Breaux was hit by the pitch and scored on a Motley home run.
The Chaparrals tied the game with two runs in the bottom of the first. Toole bunted and Jaco was safe at first on a McLennan error. Toole scored on a groundout by Rivera, and Jaco scored on a single by Pewenofkit.
McLennan took the lead with four runs in the second. Chase Sortor, Haring, and Mario Vela drew three consecutive walks to load the bases. Callil followed with a double to score Sortor and Haring. Roller was hit by the pitch and Motley singled to score Vela. Josh Breaux followed with a fielder's choice to score Callil.
Three more Highlanders scored in the third. Haring singled and stole second, and Vela walked. Callil doubled to score Haring. A wild pitch brought Vela in to score and moved Callil to third. Roller then singled to score Callil.
McLennan padded their lead with six runs in the fourth. Sortor singled, moved to second on wild pitch and scored on a single by Haring. Haring stole second and scored on a single by Vela. Callil followed with a fielder's choice, putting Vela out at second. Joe Breaux and Chris Roller both singled to load the bases. Motley followed with a fielder's choice scoring Callil and putting Roller out at second. Josh Breaux singled to score older brother Joe. Venter then doubled to score Motley and Josh Breaux.
The Highlanders' final two runs came in the top of the fifth. Haring led off with a solo home run. Griffin Williams then tripled and scored on a single by Roller.
Vernon added two runs in the sixth. Cooper Edwards walked and Luis Valenzuela doubled. Both runners scored on a single by Ryan Carter.
The Chaparrals rounded out the scoring with two runs in the seventh. Jaco walked and moved to second on a wild pitch. Jaylan Prince followed with a double. Jaco scored on another wild pitch and Prince scored on a ground out by Pewenofkit.
"Today was two good wins. Anytime you can score 30 runs in a doubleheader, you've got to be pleased with your offense. Motley was outstanding with seven RBIs on the day. Josh Breaux hit a couple balls really well and had four RBIs on the day. We had nine doubles, a triple and six home runs in the doubleheader. Anytime you end up with 16 extra-base hits in a doubleheader, it's a great day for you offensively," head coach Mitch Thompson said. "I'm proud of the way our guys competed. Horn was not overly sharp in game one, but [he] did pitch well enough to get us the win. Then Miller was pretty good until he got tired in the sixth of the second game."
"We will play Vernon again on Good Friday so that we can give the kids Easter Weekend off, which is where we need to be with our families on Easter. We need a big crowd out there on Friday so we can finish off the Vernon series before we break for Easter."
McLennan 13, Vernon 2
McLennan 109 12 – 13 12 1
Vernon 101 00 – 2 6 5
Bailey Horn and Josh Breaux. Austin Eggleston, Nicholas Zelner (3), Zach Cummings (5) and Hayden Jaco. WP: Horn: LP: Eggleston. Leading hitters – McLennan: Joe Breaux (1-2, RBI), Nic Motley (2-4, 2B, HR, 3 RBI), Josh Breaux (2-4, 2B, HR, 3 RBI), Brendan Venter (1-2, HR, RBI), Griffin Paxton (2-3, HR, 2 RBI), Brock Morrison (2-4, 2 2B) and Cole Haring (2-4, 2B, RBI); Vernon: Hayden Jaco (2-2, 2B, RBI), Marco Rivera (2-3) and David Pewenofkit (1-3, RBI). Record: McLennan 33-7 (14-3).
McLennan 17, Vernon 6
McLennan 243 620 0 – 17 17 2
Vernon 200 002 2 – 6 7 1
Kyrell Miller, Palmer Wenzel (7) and Nic Motley, Nick Thornquist (5). Brent Pronger, Cooper Harris (2), R.J. Gaines (4) and Cooper Edwards. WP: Miller; LP: Pronger. Leading hitters – McLennan: George Callil (2-6, 2 2B, 3 RBI), Chris Roller (3-4, 2 RBI), Nic Motley (2-4, HR, 3 RBI), Josh Breaux (2-4, 2B, 2 RBI), Brendan Venter (1-4, 2B, 2 RBI), Cole Haring (3-4, HR, 2 RBI), Mario Vela (1-3, RBI) and Griffin Williams (1-1, 3B); Vernon: Marco Rivera (0-3, RBI), David Pewenofkit (1-3, 2 RBI), Luis Valenzuela (1-4, 2B), Ryan Carter (1-2, 2 RBI) and Jaylan Prince (1-1, 2B). Record: McLennan 34-7 (15-3).
