Whiff King
When a pitcher receives a no-decision, it often indicates his performance on the mound was unremarkable.
That certainly does not describe Branson Carson's effort Monday afternoon.
Moniteau's junior struck out 15 batters in 5 1/3 innings. He left the mound with one on and one out in the top of the sixth as he was nearing 100 pitches with the Warriors leading Brookville 2-0.
He was still in line for the win in the top of the seventh when the Raiders rallied for a pair of runs to tie the game at 3.
Carson's chance to win the game at the plate was taken away in the bottom of the seventh when, with runners on second and third and no outs, he was intentionally walked.
When he realized Brookville's plan to put him on base, Carson shook his head as he tossed his bat toward his dugout and jogged to first base.
“That was frustrating,” admitted Carson. “I wanted that at-bat.”
The next batter, Dawson Wallace, lofted a fly ball to shallow left where Brookville's Bay Harper dropped the ball. He recovered to force out Mason Mershimer at third base, just as Keagan Book stepped on home plate to give the Warriors a 4-3 win at Michelle Krill Field at Historic Pullman Park.
“Hats off to their kid,” said Brookville coach Nathan Bonfardine. “He controlled the game. Holy smokes ... 15 strikeouts!”
Carson's outing included one walk and one unearned run allowed on three hits.
“As long as we win the game, it doesn't matter to me who wins on the mound,” said Carson, who survived a jam in the top of the fifth.
The Raiders (6-5) had loaded the bases with two outs thanks to a fielding error, a walk and Jace Miner's third base hit in as many at-bats.
But Carson fanned Chase Palmer on an off-speed pitch to keep Brookville from cracking the scoreboard.
“He started off today throwing just his fastball and change-up,” said Moniteau catcher Brady Thompson of Carson. “He was hesitant to throw his curveball, but he started working it in and did a fantastic job.”
The only out recorded during Carson's outing that was not a strikeout was Bryce Rafferty's fly out to end the top of the first. He then struck out the side in four straight innings.
“Nobody was able to hit my curve today, except for a couple of foul balls,” said Carson, who now has 37 strikeouts in just 16 2/3 innings pitched this season. His ERA is now a paltry 1.26.
“I love striking people out,” he said. “I probably ended up throwing as many curves today as I did fastballs.”
Brock Matthews got the win. Like Carson, he was the victim of some poor defense behind him. A throwing error to begin the top of the seventh helped lead to a pair of RBI-groundouts from Miner and Hunter Geer that tied the game.Carson's counterpart on the mound, Brookville's Miner, pitched well. The Wichita State University commit allowed an unearned run in the first frame when Mershimer's single was misplayed in the outfield, allowing Book to score.Carson helped his own cause in the fifth when his double plated Book for a 2-0 edge. Miner finished that inning, but was relieved by Palmer at the start of the sixth.Miner struck out seven, walked three and allowed two runs (one earned) on six hits.“Jace had a pretty good outing,” said Bonfardine. “They (Warriors) were able to string a few more hits together. We need to be more aggressive at the plate.”The Warriors (8-2) made it 3-1 in the bottom of the sixth when Matthews doubled and scored on Thompson's third and final base hit of the game.Brookville 000 001 2 — 3 5 3Moniteau 100 011 1 — 4 9 3W: Brock Matthews 1.2 IP (1K, 1BB). L: Chase Palmer 1+ IP (1K, 2BB).Brookville (6-5): Jace Miner 2-1B 3B RBIMoniteau (8-2): Keagan Book 2-1B 3R, Branson Carson 2B RBI, Brock Matthews 1B 2B R, Brady Thompson 3-1B RBIWednesday: Moniteau at Cranberry
