The Crest Lancers’ woes continue after falling to West Franklin 7-6 and 10-5.
With the postseason just around the corner, the Lancers enter the regional tournament losing four of their last five games after a pair of rallies came up short Monday.
Crest seemed in control of the opener after jumping out to an early lead, but faltered in the later frames.
An RBI single by junior first baseman Drake Weir put Crest on the scoreboard in the opening frame.
In the third inning, Weir tied the game 3-3 with a two-out, two RBI single, then the Lancers took the lead on RBI singles from junior outfielder Dalton Kersley and sophomore third baseman Roy Gordon. That was as close to victory as Crest would get as West Franklin scored four unanswered runs to take the opener.
Senior pitcher Kade Nilges took the loss with three strikeouts over 4 1/3 innings. Freshman Koiy Miller came on in relief with a strikeout in his 1 1/3 innings on the mound. Weir had a team-leading three RBIs, followed by Gordon with two.
Junior second baseman Henry White gave Crest a glimpse of hope after opening the finale with a two-run homer in the opening frame, but West Franklin scored nine-unanswered runs to slam the door on any potential to split Monday’s doubleheader. The Lancers pulled themselves back into contention with a trio of runs in the fifth inning from RBIs by Weir and White, but it was not enough as West Franklin pulled away for the 10-5 win.
Starter Jenson Barker took the loss while Gordon came on in relief to tally the Lancers’ only strikeout. White had a team-leading three RBIs, followed by Weir with two.
