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Pekin pitches way past New London
Panthers give up two hits against Tigers in 1A district final
Southeast Iowa Union offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced.
SIGOURNEY — In a tightly contested Class 1A District 5 final Saturday night in Sigourney, the script flipped from the last meeting between New London and Pekin.
After falling 2-1 earlier in the season, Pekin (12-9) returned the favor, claiming a 2-1 win over New London (15-10) to advance to the regional final.
The Panthers struck early, capitalizing on a first-inning hit-by-pitch and a Tigers error to set up Henry Adam for an RBI double, giving Pekin a 1-0 lead.
Adam, who was dominant on the mound, struck out nine and kept New London hitless through five innings.
“It all started at 10 this morning,” Adam said of his pitching. “I was in the zone. I knew what I needed to do. I was just locked in the whole time. I flipped the switch once we started warming up. I just tried to keep them guessing.”
More trouble came for the Tigers in the second, when two defensive errors opened the door for another Pekin run. Nolan Glick delivered an RBI single to make it 2-0 — ultimately the game-winning hit.
“We had those errors that really hurt us,” New London head coach Jayden Flowers said. “It was probably a 1-0 ball game and we win if we make the routine plays, but that’s baseball. I think it came down to making those simple plays.”
New London’s defense tightened up after that, allowing just two more Panthers to reach scoring position the rest of the way. The Tigers finally broke through in the sixth with a hit from Memphis Watson, who reached second on an errant throw.
Gavin Strawhacker moved him to third, and Gavin Menke-Bailey drove him in with a groundout to cut the deficit in half.
Menke-Bailey came on in relief in the seventh and recorded three quick outs, but the Tigers needed runs.
Glick closed things out for Pekin, forcing a groundout and striking out the final two batters.
“That’s the game right there,” Adam said of the state qualifier. “That’s the biggest one. I mean, it’s going to be a fun one.”
Despite a strong defensive effort down the stretch, early errors proved costly for the Tigers, as Pekin’s pitching and timely hitting made the difference in the narrow victory.
“I can’t thank those guys enough,” Flowers said of the senior class. “Without those guys our program would be nowhere near where it’s at right now. Those senior kids have picked up those younger kids and showed them the way, the culture and how hard you have to work to be good. They made my job easy, I cant thank them enough.”
