EUREKA, IL – The Principia baseball team took on the Eureka Red Devils in a weekend series, battling through wet weather conditions in game one before things cleared up for game two. Despite solid efforts on both sides of the ball, the Panthers fell short in both games, with Eureka taking game one 11-3 and game two 7-3.
Game One: Eureka 11, Principia 3
Micah Cook got the start for the Panthers and opened strong with a clean first inning. In the top of the second, the Panthers struck first when
Dean Wood worked a two-out walk, followed by a two-run blast from
Salvador Flores to left field, giving Principia an early 2-0 lead. However, Eureka responded quickly in the bottom of the third, stringing together five singles to plate five runs and take a 5-2 lead.
Principia looked to answer in the fourth, putting runners in scoring position after a walk, single, and sacrifice bunt, but back-to-back strikeouts ended the threat. Eureka capitalized in the bottom of the inning, scoring three runs before
Ben Sanders entered in relief to get a key pop-up and line out to limit further damage. By the end of the fifth, Eureka extended its lead to 10-2.
Ryan Kremer took over on the mound in the sixth, working around a walk and hit-by-pitch to allow just one run on three fly outs to left. In the seventh, the Panthers loaded the bases but couldn't push across a run. Kremer continued to impress in the bottom half, aided by
Skyler Stock, who threw out a would-be base stealer at third.
Nick Cotter handled the eighth, allowing a single and a stolen base put the game-ending run at second. After stealing third,
Justice Fortson came up big, gunning down the runner at the plate to keep the game alive. The Panthers showed some fight in the ninth when
Cole Christensen singled and
Braxton Ramsey doubled to put runners in scoring position.
Kailis Mayo drove in Christensen with a single, but a strikeout and a heads-up play by Eureka's catcher on a wild pitch ended the game.
Ramsey led the offense with two hits, while six other Panthers recorded one hit each.
Game Two: Eureka 7, Principia 3
Koye Calzada took the hill for game two and ran into early trouble after a lead-off error allowed Eureka to manufacture a run. A second-inning lead-off walk also came around to score after a two-out error, putting the Panthers down 2-0.
Tyler Gingras got the Panthers on the board in the fourth with a solo home run down the left-field line, cutting the deficit to 2-1. However, lead-off walks continued to hurt the Panthers, and Eureka capitalized in the bottom half with a walk, single, and a triple to plate two. A ground out brought home another, extending the lead to 5-1.
Principia fought back in the fifth when Dement drew a walk, and Ramsey crushed a no-doubt homer to left, making it 5-3.
Nick Dolci entered in the bottom of the inning with the bases loaded and no outs, allowing just one run on a sac fly before escaping without further damage.
Eureka tacked on one more in the sixth to make it 7-3.
Ethan Booth pitched a clean eighth, allowing only a single before ending the inning on a pop-out to right. Despite the losses, the Panthers showed resilience, with solid performances from Flores, Ramsey, and Gingras at the plate, along with strong bullpen outings.
Looking ahead: The team will look to regroup and carry their competitive play into the next series in a non-conference doubleheader at Illinois College in Jacksonville, IL slated to start on Wednesday at 1:00 pm.
