HAYS – The Hays Larks scored 16 runs from the fourth inning on Wednesday night as they rallied from a six-run deficit to beat the Gameday Saints 17-7 in seven innings.
Gameday jumped out to a 4-0 lead through and inning and a half. With one out in the top of the second reliever Trey Riggs walked the bases loaded and then the Saints got an RBI single and a bases clearing double to take the four-run lead. Riggs lasted just two-thirds of the inning allowing four runs.
Hays (29-6) got a run back in the bottom of the inning on a Dylan Dreiling RBI groundout.
In the top of the four Gameday scored two more runs to build a 6-1 lead.
The Larks offense came alive in the bottom of the frame outscoring Gameday 16-1 the rest of the way.
In the five-run fourth, Hays scored on three wild pitches, an RBI groundout and a Courtland Lawson RBI double tying the game at six.
After Gameday retook the lead with a solo homerun in the top of the fifth the Larks answered with three in the bottom of the inning to take the lead back for good.
After back-to-back doubles to open the inning Zach Henry tied the game with an RBI single and Lawson followed with an RBI single that gave Hays the 8-7 lead. They added a third run in the inning on an error for a 9-7 lead through five innings.
Jackson Blue struck out the side in the top of the sixth inning, he finished with seven strikeout and picked up the win. In the bottom of the frame Hays scored five more runs.
Hays took a 10-7 lead with a run on a passed ball. Lawson followed with a bases loaded double making it 13-7. Two batters later Grant Schmidt made it 14-7 with an RBI double.
In the seventh inning Matt Cavanagh tripled in a run and then Henry drove in Cavanagh to put Hays up 16-7. Three batters later Schmidt singled in Henry giving the Larks the 17-7 run-rule walk-off win.
Courtland Lawson drove in five runs and Zach Henry collected four hits as he and Grant Schmidt each plated three runs.
Hays amassed 21 hits in the win.
The Larks are 29-6 and are off until the NBC World Series that starts next week.