Maddox West and Winnetonka’s Dylan Kroll traded zeros for most of Thursday’s game, but a two-out error in the sixth inning opened the floodgates for six unearned runs and handed Republic a 7-1 loss.
Republic struck first in the opening inning. Nolan Lashley doubled to lead off the game and scored on a Preston McCracken single to left field. Winnetonka tied it in the second when Ryan Blaich singled home Dallas Mackie, who had walked and advanced on a sacrifice bunt.
From there, both pitchers locked in. West retired the side in order in the third and fifth innings. Kroll kept Republic off the board after the first, working around a fifth-inning single by Cooper Thomas.
The game turned with two outs in the sixth. Mariano Farnan doubled to right and moved to third on a groundout. An outfield error allowed Mackie to reach, and Farnan scored for a 2-1 Winnetonka lead. From there, Winnetonka piled on, extending its lead to 7-1 before the inning was over.
Kroll struck out the side in the seventh to finish a complete game. He allowed four hits, struck out seven, and walked three on 98 pitches. West took the loss, going six innings and allowing just one earned run on nine hits. He struck out three and walked three.
McCracken had Republic’s only RBI, going 1-for-3. Lashley’s leadoff double was the Tigers’ only extra-base hit. Fisher Moore reached on a bunt single and stole second but was stranded.
The loss drops Republic to 2-4. The Tigers play two games on Saturday to continue the Carthage Festival.
Linescore
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 - R H E
Republic 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 1 4 1
Winnetonka 0 1 0 0 0 6 0 - 7 9 1
Republic Pitching
Maddox West (L): 6.0 IP, 9 H, 7 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 3 SO (90 pitches, 53 strikes)
Winnetonka Pitching
Dylan Kroll: 7.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 7 SO (98 pitches, 66 strikes)
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