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Washington Evening Journal
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Washington, IA 52353
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Mt. Pleasant baseball holds off New London
Panthers’ scored four runs in the fourth to sneak past Tigers
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MT. PLEASANT — A four-run fourth inning proved to be the difference as Mt. Pleasant pulled away from New London for an 8-4 victory on Wednesday night.
What started as a defensive duel through two innings quickly shifted into an offensive showdown as both teams found their rhythm at the plate.
New London struck first in the top of the third with an RBI single from Memphis Watson, who had a standout night despite the loss, going a perfect 4-for-4 with four singles and an RBI.
Mt. Pleasant wasted no time answering back. In the bottom half of the third, as Zach Newton doubled in Brayton Hutson to tie the game at 1-1.
After shutting down the Tigers in the top of the fourth, the Panthers broke things open. Payton Walker delivered the highlight of the night with a rare three-run inside-the-park home run. Following a misplay in the outfield and an errant throw, Walker circled the bases to give Mt. Pleasant a 4-1 lead.
Grayson Lowery added an RBI single later in the inning to make it 5-1, a run that would eventually stand as the game-winner.
New London mounted a late push, scoring three more runs courtesy of RBIs from Gavin Menke-Bailey (2) and Gage Burden (1), but the Panthers answered right back. Cooper Coleman drove in two runs in the bottom half of the sixth to secure the win.
Liam Marshall picked up the win for Mt. Pleasant, going all seven innings, allowing eight hits, four runs (two earned), two walked and three strikeouts.
For New London, Gavin Menke-Bailey and Gavin Strawhacker gave up a combined 14 hits, eight runs (eight earned), two walks and seven strikeouts (all by Menke-Bailey).
With the victory, Mt. Pleasant improves to 3-5 on the season, while New London falls to 3-3.
