Creston bats edge out win over Lenox

In an anticipated matchup between Class 1A’s strikeout leader, Lenox’s TJ Stoaks, and an early-season offensive powerhouse from Creston, the Panther bats edged out the Tigers 3-2 Wednesday en route to their fifth-straight win.

Creston’s offense entered the game with the ninth highest team batting average in the Class 3A, .347. Before facing the Panthers, Stoaks’ opponents’ batting average was .169, recording 125 strikeouts through 10 games, making it an uphill battle for the Panther bats.

Creston head coach Mike McCabe said he expected a low-scoring game facing Stoaks, but it was a chance for the Panthers to see the upper echelon of pitchers.

“It came at a perfect time for facing (Stoaks), as far as for us,” McCabe said. “We’ve got Atlantic coming up tomorrow, Lewis-Central, Harlan, Knoxville, so the pitching is going to be an upgrade here. Certainly she’s right there.”

For Lenox, head coach Mandy Stoaks said she knew her team was going to have to be on top of their game defensively with Creston’s ability at the plate.

In the bottom of the first, Creston threatened after Sara Keeler got on to leadoff the game. Peyton Rice slapped a ball through the left side and Gracie Hagle got on with a bunt single to load the bases.

TJ Stoaks struck out Nevaeh Randall and doubled up Emma Hanson on a line drive to get out of the inning without any damage.

After escaping a potentially disastrous inning, Lenox loaded the bases in the top of the second, but Haylee Gillam stranded all three by getting a lineout from Emilee Reed to Hagle at short.

The third inning saw the only scoring of the game for both sides.

TJ Stoaks led the top half of the inning off with a single, advancing to second on the throw back into the infield. She moved to third on a throw to first base from Randall and scored on a base hit from Cadence Douglas.

Cassidy Nelson kept the scoring going with a one-hop double off the left field wall to make the game 2-0, but Kayla Yzaguirre was thrown out at home on a relay from Braelyn Baker and Hagle.

The Creston bats didn’t take long to respond. Keeler fought off tough pitches from TJ Stoaks in an at-bat that lasted more than 10 pitches. She laced a changeup over second base to get on first.

McCabe said at-bats like Keeler’s started to come more frequently throughout the game, and he was proud of the offense for making TJ Stoaks work hard.

With Keeler on again, Rice put down another bunt. The throw got away from first to advance Keeler to third and Rice to second.

Hagle hit a sharp ball through Caitlyn Maynes’ legs to tie the game at two. Hanson followed that up with a hard hit ball to Cadence Douglas at short. An error on Cadence Douglas scored Hagle and extended the lead to 3-2.

“That one inning kind of did it for us,” Lenox head coach Mandy Stoaks said. "Without looking back, I believe all three runs came on errors, or some kind of error, that happened in that inning caused those three runs. Take that out and we're right in it."

Keeler finished her day 1-for-2 with one walk and scored one run. Rice tallied one hit on a bunt and scored one run. Hagle tacked on two hits for the Panthers.

Both Gillam and TJ Stoaks blew through the bats for the remainder of the game in the circle. Solid defense and efficient pitching on both sides limited baserunners.

TJ Stoaks ended her day pitching seven innings, striking out eight. Of the three runs allowed, one was earned. Gillam pitched six innings, allowing six hits and two earned runs.

Keely Coen entered the game for Creston in the seventh inning to get three quick outs and tally a save.

Mandy Stoaks said the team’s offense might be “starting to click” with some “solid hits” throughout the game, and she told the team after the game they should have confidence after hanging with a solid Creston team.

For the Panthers, McCabe said to take a win against such a highly touted pitcher in TJ Stoaks and making adjustments was something the group will carry throughout the remainder of the schedule.

UP NEXT – Creston takes on Atlantic in a doubleheader at the Atlantic Little League Complex Thursday (today) at 5:30 and 7:30 p.m. Lenox faces Bedford Thursday (today) at home with first pitch beginning at 7:30 p.m.

Creston 3, Lenox 2

R  H  E

LX  002  000 0 — 2 7  4

CR  003  000 0 — 3 5  2

LX: TJ Stoaks 7IP 8Ks 1BB and Cassidy Nelson. CR: Haylee Gillam 6IP 2KS 2BB, Keely Coen 1IP 1K 0BB and Peyton Rice. W - Gillam. L - Stoaks. HR — None. 3B — None. 2B – LX: Nelson (1). RBI — LX: Cadence Douglas (1), Cassidy Nelson (1) CR: Gracie Hale (1). Multiple hits — LX: Kayla Yzaguirre (2). CR: Hagle (2).