Pekin baseball tops Sigourney at home

PACKWOOD ? Nazereth Rambo pitched four strong innings in his first appearance of the season to help the Pekin baseball team to a 12-3 win over rival Sigourney Thursday.

The win was the third in a row for the Panthers, as Rambo allowed three runs on no hits in the four-inning start. Graham Wittrock closed out the final three innings to earn the save, allowing no runs with three strikeouts.

Although Pekin cruised in the final few innings, the game was a tight one at the start. The Panthers and Sigourney were tied 0-all after two innings, then the home team found the scoreboard first with a two-run third.

The turning point came in the fourth inning, however, when a hard-hit ball off the bat of Thomas Slaney resulted in a Sigourney fielding error and 4-0 lead for Pekin. From there, the Panthers tacked on two more runs in the third and another run in the fifth.

Wittrock, who finished 3 for 4, ripped a two-RBI double as part of the five-run sixth inning to break the game wide open.

Tater Clubb had three hits, including two doubles, along with a pair of RBI. Slaney and Kolby Allsup finished with two RBI apiece.

The Panthers (12-10, 8-3 SEISC north) head to Lone Tree tonight for a battle of the top two teams in the division. Then, they host their annual tournament in Packwood Saturday. Teams in attendance will include eighth-ranked Van Buren, Moravia and New London.