By Fred Kroner
Eighth-grader Bradley Jones fired a four-inning no-hitter on Tuesday (Aug. 15) as the Mahomet-Seymour Junior High baseball team recorded a 19-1 win at Normal Chiddix.
Jones walked two batters and struck out five. He did not yield an earned run.
He was also one of the Bulldogs’ offensive heroes, pounding three hits and driving in three runs. His first-inning double drove in the game’s first run and he followed with a run-scoring single in the second inning
Marco Casillas swatted a double and a triple and delivered five RBI. Three runs came home on his bases-loaded triple. Brennan Bailey and Preston Clark each ended with two hits.
Colin Whooley crossed home plate four times. Bailey tallied three runs and posted three RBI. Scoring two runs apiece were Camden Beedy, Owen Henry, Wil Selk and Jack Wilks.
On Thursday (Aug. 17), M-S broke away from a 4-4 tie in the fourth inning – with a four-run outburst – and went on to post a 14-5 victory at Champaign Jefferson.
The first five batters in the Bulldogs’ lineup combined for 12 hits (six for extra bases), 12 runs and six extra-base hits.
Leadoff hitter Bailey was 2-for-5. He was followed by Beedy (2-for-5), Jones (3-for-4), Casillas (3-for-3) and Selk (2-for-2).
Jones tallied four runs. Beedy and Casillas each scored twice. Casillas – who also stole home and received an intentional walk – ripped three extra-base hits and drove in three runs.
Reliever Clark pitched 3 2/3 innings and picked up the win. He yielded three hits, one run and two walks while striking out two batters.
On Saturday (Aug. 19), the Bulldogs made their home-opener a successful one when Selk drilled a walk-off double to right-center field, driving in Beedy with the decisive run in a 3-2 conquest of Normal Kingsley.
Two innings earlier, Selk foiled the Kingsley strategy of walking Casillas to load the bases when he delivered a sacrifice fly to left field to create a 2-2 tie.
Casillas pitched the final two innings, needing just 19 pitches to retire the six batters he faced. He fanned one and earned the win.
Bailey worked the first five innings and escaped a first-inning jam when he gave up a leadoff triple. Bailey then struck out the next two batters and ended the inning on a ground ball to Jones.
Bailey struck out five in his stint and walked no one.
Casillas had two hits for the Bulldogs. Beedy tallied two runs and Selk produced the two RBI.
M-S (5-0) is scheduled to return to action on Wednesday (Aug. 23) at home against St. Joseph.
The Bulldogs’ junior varsity team lost to Chiddix, 10-4, but beat Jefferson, 8-3. In that game, both Oliver Graham and Beau McMurry had two hits. Against an eighth-grade team from Kingsley, the M-S JV team dropped a 17-2 decision.
