On a day when its defense resembled the Bad News Bears, Festus Post 253 relied on its powerful offense to muster enough runs to hold back Cape Girardeau Ford and Sons Post 63 in Saturday’s Zone 4 championship in Jackson.
Post 253 held leads of 7-3 and 12-4, but couldn’t retire Cape slugger Garrett Siebert until the end, or get out of its own way in the field, where at one point Festus had as many errors (six) as hits (six).
Siebert finished the game 3 for 5 at the plate, and just missed hitting for the cycle with a single, double and triple.
Festus pitchers Donovan McDonough and Austin Bearden gave way to Brennan Pryor in the eighth inning as Post 253 clung to a 13-9 lead. Pryor faced Siebert to lead off the eighth and got him to pop out to second baseman Jaden Courtois. With Cape’s best hitter behind him, Pryor retired the next five batters and Festus (26-9) hung on to win the zone championship.
“I just wanted to throw strikes,” said Pryor who will be a senior at Festus High this year. “I knew my team was behind me. I know my guys have my back at all times. I just go out there with the mentality to get it done."
Offensively for Festus, Courtois was 2 for 4 with two runs and a double; Blain Prater was 1 for 4 with a double and run scored; and Collin Mann, Zac Meyer and Chandler Dix combined to go 0 for 5, but accounted for six runs and two RBIs either through being walked or hit by pitches.
To read a full account of this story, read this week’s Leader.
ZONE 4 TOURNAMENT
July 18-22 at Jackson Stadium
Unseeded, double-elimination tournament
Festus Post 253, Ste. Genevieve Post 150, Eureka Post 177, Jackson Post 158, Cape Girardeau Ford and Sons Post 63
July 18: Jackson 5, Ste. Genevieve 4
July 19: Festus 9, Cape 1; Jackson 9, Eureka 5
July 20: Cape 11, Ste. Genevieve 6; Festus 14, Jackson 5
July 21: Cape 4, Eureka 1; Cape 6, Jackson 2
July 22: Championship: Festus 13, Cape 9
AAA American Legion state tournament
July 27-29 at Sedalia