Duo’ing aces: Malad gets stellar starts from 1A-1B hurlers; rounding up other D5 play-in action
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MALAD CITY — Malad head baseball coach Jeff Snow likes to say that he doesn’t have a one-two pitcher tandem at the top of the rotation. Instead, he insists his top hurlers are more of a 1A-1B duo.
Seniors Brycen Howe and Brady Showell lent credence to their coach’s claims Friday, dominating the 3A Play-In Series Southeast Qualifier at Malad City Park.
Howe cruised to a shutout victory in game one of the super-regional tournament, striking out 10 Parma Panthers while allowing just three hits.
RELATED | Malad takes super-regional opener behind dominant Howe
Not to be outdone, Showell followed by setting down 10 Grangeville Bulldogs in game two, holding the bracket’s top-seeded squad to three hits and one run across 6 innings of work.
Grangeville did challenge in the seventh, scoring four runs against reliever Holdyn Higley — who recorded just one out before he was replaced by Carter Blaisdell, who then struck out the two batters he faced.
Senior Kurt Ward celebrated his birthday with a powerful day at the plate, finishing the game 3-for-4 with a double and a homer to lead the Dragon offense.
Parma and Grangeville will play Saturday, at 10 a.m., with the winner earning a rematch with Malad. One more win will earn the Dragons a super-regional victory, while the winner of the morning game will have to beat the home team twice to do so.
Other District 5 super-regional action
6A
The Highland Rams found themselves in a pair of tooth-and-nail battles Friday, playing in the northern super-regional, at Lake City High School.
Highland first beat the host Timberwolves, 7-6, in nine innings.
The Rams took a 2-1 lead into the seventh inning against Coeur d’Alene in game two. The Vikings, though, scored twice to earn a walk-off victory.
Highland and Lake City will play Saturday morning, at 10 a.m., with the winner earning a championship-round showdown with Coeur d’Alene. CDA has some breathing room, needing to fall twice in order to be eliminated.
5A
The Pocatello Thunder, playing in the east super-regional, scored a 12-6 victory over Mountain Home to open the action at Bonneville High School, Friday.
They followed that up with a 6-0 loss to the host Bees. The Thunder are now set for a rematch with Mountain Homes, Saturday morning.
Pocatello will need three wins Saturday — one over the Tigers and two over Bonneville — in order to secure a play-in tourney win and state berth.
4A
With 4A brackets set up different from others, Marsh Valley hosts Payette for a best-of-three series to decide the southeast super-regional.
Behind starter Tate Whitworth, who carried a no-no into the seventh inning, the Eagles took Game 1, Friday at Marsh Valley High School. The two teams will be back at it Saturday, at noon. A Pirate victory would force a decisive game at 2:30 p.m.
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