Saints Stay in Second with Split at Butler

The Seward County Saints and Butler Grizzlies split their four game series. After splitting in Liberal Thursday, the Saints and Grizzlies split Sunday at MacDonald Stadium-Brad Long Field in El Dorado. Seward won game won 14-9 and Butler took game two 9-6. The wind was blowing out at up to 40 miles per hour on Sunday.

The Saints took game won to assure no worse than a split. Liberal’s Braxton Hyde started for the Grizzlies. Hyde pitched 4 and 1/3 innings for Butler. Kase Johnson lined a homer to left in the first for a 1-0 lead. AJ Folds and Sam Berberich singled before Peter Goldy bounced a single to left to score a run. Wyatt Grant singled home a third inning run after back to back walks to begin the inning. Sam Berberich laced a double down the right field line to lead off the fourth. KP Werner singled home a run. Kase Johnson roped a double to left to make it 5-0 going to the bottom of the fourth. That’s when Butler put up a six spot on four hits, two wild pitches, and two walks. The Saints responded with an eight run fifth. Braden Boisvert and George Gallardo singled. Berberich singled to right for score a run. Peter Goldy doubled home a run. Richard Armijo doubled home two. Kase Johnson singled home a run for a 10-6 lead. Braden Boisvert muscled a three run homer to left for a 13-6 lead. Butler scored one in the fifth and two in the sixth. Richard Armijo doubled to lead off the seventh and KP Werner’s sac fly got the 14th run home. Johnson was 3-4 with three RBI’s. Mason Martinez pitched five innings with six strikeouts and two walks. Cory Didier worked two shutout innings. Seward out-hit Butler 16-9.

The Saints got off to a good start in game two with three runs in the first. Kase Johnson homered to left to score two and Braden Boisvert unleashed a mammoth solo shot over the train tracks in left for a 3-0 lead. Johnson doubled to lead off the third. Grant then singled and AJ Folds drove home Grant with a single for a 4-0 SCCC lead. Butler scored in the third. KP Werner homered to left in the fourth for a 5-1 lead. The Grizzlies scored two in the fifth and two in the sixth while the Saints bats were stagnant in the fifth and sixth. It was tied 5-5 after six. Werner homered to lead off the seventh and give SCCC a 6-5 lead. But Butler scored three in the bottom of the seventh for an 8-6 lead. Seward walked home a run in the seventh. The Saints defense was sloppy with five errors and the hits were even at 10-10. Eric Turner went five innings allowing three earned runs with six strikeouts and one walk. Colt Bartling struck out four in two innings allowing one run. KP Werner was 2-4 with two homers. Kase Johnson and Wyatt Grant had two hits a piece.

Seward remains in second at 20-20 and 15-9 in the Jayhawk West. Butler is 21-12 overall and 17-11 in the Jayhawk West. Seward hosts Clarendon for a nine inning game Tuesday at 3pm.