In a standout performance, the Dragon baseball team put down the Sugar/Salem Diggers in their home game Tuesday, March 24.  Down 1-0 in the bottom of the third inning, the MHS team scored 10 runs, the defense holding the Diggers scoreless to claim the 10-1 victory.

“Defense wins games.”  A statement Head Coach Chad Maroney preaches to his team.  And they buy in.  With a solid foundation and continued honing on those fundamental skills, the Dragons have proved they know how to play a strong defensive game, all the while racking up the runs to dominate the game.

Tuesday’s matchup against the Diggers started out slow, both teams settling into the game.  Holden Higley solidified two outs from the pitcher’s mound, striking out the first two Sugar/Salem batters.  Walking the next on base, Higley turned his attention back to the plate.  Swinging for it, the batter knocked it right into foul territory.  Higley sailed another strike into catcher Carter Carey’s glove who immediately sent the ball to second base where shortstop Dawson Peterson thwarted the steal attempt for the third out.

Malad started off strong getting multiple players on base, Easton Green with a triple to center field and Peterson on base by wearing the pitch.  Solid pitching by the Diggers led to two outs, followed by a pop fly in right field kept Green and Peterson from finishing their trip around the bases and back out on defense.

It was in the top of the second inning that Sugar/Salem found a little success on the bases.  With a runner on third and on first, the Digger batter found a gap of the MHS defense, giving his teammate just the time he needed to run home to make the score 1-0, while Malad simultaneously got the out at second base.  Down the lineup two batters, the Dragon defense forced the final out of the inning.

Malad was hoping for a quick rebuttal on the score board but three contacts with the bat ended with three quicks out a return to the field to defense.  But they returned the favor, HIgley pitching two strikeouts with Ethan Horsley backing him up with the final putout in right field with the catch of the pop fly hit.

Hudson Daniels got things started for Malad, battling at the plate with a 1-2 count before hitting a ground ball to center field.  Taking advantage of the wild pitch, Daniels advanced to second base before Green hit another base hit to end the play with runners on first and third.  As Cale Briggs stood in the box, just hitting a foul ball, Daniels took a gamble to run home, making his way across the plate before the Diggers could tag him out.  Taking advantage of the action at home, Green worked his way around the bases, eventually scoring between pitches minutes later.

With the lead now in hand, the Dragons played with momentum and confidence on their side.  Down the lineup, Carey slammed a line drive to right field, making his way to second on the hit.  Pinch runner Brayden Arnout stepped in to run bases for the catcher, reading the play just right to round third base on the pitcher's error as Horsley battled at the plate.  The Dragons ended the inning up 3-1 as they moved into the fourth inning.

Malad didn’t afford Sugar/Salem any progress in the top of the inning, Ky Willie picking off a hit in the outfield, Daniels at first base to finish the out after a dropped third strike, and Higley pitching a strikeout from the mound.

Two quick outs for the MHS team made it look like the inning wouldn’t make any headway for the Dragons but the players had different plans in mind.  Willie took first base after four pitches outside of the strike zone, followed by cousin Green.  Splitting the infield on first and third, Green made a move to steal second. Seeing the play, Willie ran for home, stealing the base and taking the attention to himself to allow Green the time he needed to land safely on second.

Briggs won the count to walk to first before Peterson doubled on a line drive to left to punch in both Green and Briggs to make the score 6-1.  Before a pop fly that tallied the last out of the inning, Peterson advanced to third and then stole home to help finish the inning 7-1. 

Hudson Daniels trying to get the out on the pickoff attempt.

 The fifth inning followed suit, the Diggers collecting three outs before adding the score board and the Dragons racking up another run, Horsley making  progress with his base running to steal second, advance to third and then finish his run to home on an error by the Digger defense.  

Malad topped off the scoreboard with two more runs in the bottom of the sixth.  Two out to the team already, Briggs landed a basehit to put him on first.  Following him at the plate, Peterson slammed the hit to left field, racing around the bases for a homerun to bump up the MHS score and end the game at 10-1.

The final inning was a mere formality, the Dragons forcing three outs before any Digger runners could round the bases.

Proud of his team and the way they played the game, Coach Maroney shared, “That was an awesome win for us.  We learned a lot about our team in the first week of the season but since the Burley games we also had cleared up a lot of our mistakes.  We knew Sugar would be tough but we also knew we could get a big win against them.”

Coach Maroney credited the defense for the way they were able to hold the Diggers from scoring saying, “Our pitching has been great.  Higley only allowed one hit.  He did give a few walks but no harm was done because Carey was able to throw them out when they were attempting to steal.”

“We were able to put 11 hits together and took advantage of all the base traffic to force runs across,” Coach Maroney continued, speaking of the offense.  “Dawson had a big home run to keep the momentum on our side.  We are super happy with the war we have been playing all the way through the team.  Everyone is doing what they need to do to contribute.”

The Dragons will take the field again after their spring break and their field adjustments have been completed.  The MHS team will have a big week as they travel to Marsh Valley Tuesday, April 7, host the Firth Cougars Thursday, and then compete in a weekend tournament where they will play teams from Wells, Kendrick, Grangeville, and Challis.