Ste. Genevieve treated to no-hit win by Abt

By DONN ADAMSON
Daily Journal Sports Editor

BONNE TERRE — They waited an extra 90 minutes to finally play their game, but when they did, it was well worth it as Kyle Abt pitched seven innings of no-hit ball, striking out 13 batters, facing only 25 over seven innings for a 5-0 win for the Ste. Genevieve Junior American Legion team.

Already having lost one game in the double elimination district tournament, Ste. Genevieve kept their hopes alive with the win, eliminating Rock Memorial from the tourney. Ste. Genevieve will next face the winner of Friday’s Festus/De Soto game on Saturday at 5:30 p.m.

Gaining early 0-2 counts on his victims, Abt would come back with the hook, leaving several Rock Memorial batters lunging to get a piece of it to no avail. After one out in the fifth, Abt strung together five straight K’s.

Only once did a Rock Memorial player reach second base which came after Abt issued two walks in the third inning. Abt struck out every player in the opponent’s line-up including the subs, except for Zach George who popped up twice to first and once to right.

Rock Memorial’s highlight of he game came defensively in the second inning. Ste. Genevieve loaded the bases with no outs, and then scored a run on a ball thrown away at home, and another on a single by Christian Moulton. With the bases still full and one out, a fly ball hit to Tyler Miller in center resulted in his cutting down the runners at home as well for  double play to end the threat.

Mitchell Loida made it 3-0 in the third, ,when he reached on a bobbled ball at second, stole two bases and then trotted home on a balk by Rock’s pitcher.

Ste. Genevieve’s catcher Alex Stoll gunned down a runner at second in the top of the fourth, but Rocks catcher Austin Chamberlain retaliated  in the bottom of the tinning by doing the same in the bottom of the inning. With two outs in the fourth, Ste. Genevieve ran off its first legitimate rally.

Stoll delivered a single, and was driven home when Moulton unleashed a bomb to right field that eluded a chasing right fielder Kyle Barnes for a triple.  Zach Weiler kept the rally going with single to score Moulton.

Rock’s pitcher Joe Mikesch only allowed five hits over his five innings of work, but Ste. Genevieve utilized those hits as well as four fielding errors by Rock Memorial to pull off the shut-out, not committing one error themselves in the process.

Rock Memorial  000 000 0 - 0  0  4

Ste. Genevieve  011 200 x - 5  5  0

WP- Abt 7i 0r 0h 13k 6bb.  LP - Mikesch 5i 5r 5h 6k 4bb.

Hitting:

Rock Memorial - none.

Ste. Genevieve - Moulton 2-4, Stoll 1-3, Weiler 1-3, Roth 1-3.  3b- Moulton.