WOOD RIVER - The East Alton-Wood River High School baseball team is drastically improved with a very athletic team as the 2023 season unfolds under head coach Nick Dorsey.

Dorsey has a deep passion for the game of baseball and he has some assistant coaches - Dylan Burris and Jason Gerner - who are working on key fundamentals with his players.

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East Alton-Wood River captured a big win 14-0 over North Greene on Wednesday. The Oilers lost its opener to Greenville on Tuesday at Norris Dorsey Field, and fell at home Thursday to Hillsboro 6-1.

In the season curtain-raiser on Tuesday, the Comets broke a 3-3 tie in the fourth with four runs, then scored three times in the sixth and four more in the seventh to take the win over the Oilers 14-6.

Caleb Handler led EAWR with two hits and two RBIs, while Devon Barboza also had two hits, Dillon Gerner had a hit and drove home a pair of runs, Seth Slayden, Tyler Robinson, and Drake Champlin all had hits and Tim Melton drove home another run.

Champlin struck out six while on the mound in three-and-two-thirds innings of work, while Slayden fanned three and Elijah Brown struck out two. Coach Dorsey said the opener against Greenville was a lot better game than the final score showed because most of the Comets' runs were late in the contest.

Drew Potthast and Ryan Jackson cracked three hits apiece for Greenville in the EA-WR matchup.

Coach Hutchinson Is A Definite Legend In High School Baseball Circles

Coach Dorsey said it is always a pleasure to play against legendary head baseball coach Todd Hutchinson. Coach Hutch is a Hall of Famer and has coached the Comets since 1994 and this is his 30th year. He has topped 600 wins in his baseball coaching career.

"Coach Hutch is a definite legend and someone I really look up to," Coach Dorsey said. "He is always so stoic, I have never seen him either up or down, he is always in control and is such a great coach. I have so much respect for him."

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Oilers Hold Spartans Scoreless On Wednesday

The Oilers broke open a scoreless game against the Spartans on Wednesday, scoring six times in the fifth and eight more in the sixth to take the 10-run rule win on the road.

Lucas Moore had three hits and an RBI, while Robinson had a hit and drove home three, Melton had a two-run double for his only hit and RBIs on the day, Barboza, Handler, and Champlin all had a hit and RBI each, Gerner had two RBIs and Slayden also drove in a run.

Robinson fanned six while on the mound, while Moore struck out three.

One bright spot for the Spartans was the four strong innings on the mound by sophomore Garret Hazelwonder. Hazelwonder started the game for The Spartans and the righty went four innings, allowing zero runs on two hits and striking out six. Scott, Hazelwonder, Brayden Faulkner, and Bradley Barfield each collected one hit to lead North Greene.

Hillsboro Defeats EA-WR On Thursday

In Thursday's game at home against the Hilltoppers, Hillsboro scored six unanswered runs in the first four innings before EAWR broke the shutout with a run in the sixth as the Hilltoppers went on to the win.

The Oilers were limited to two hits on the day, with Moore driving in Slayden with the only run in the sixth, while Hayden Copeland had the other EAWR hit on the day.

Gerner struck out five in three innings on the mound, while Copeland fanned three and Barboza struck out one.

The Oilers open their season 1-2 and next will play Valmeyer at home on Monday, then host Greenfield Northwestern on Tuesday and Bunker Hill next Friday, March 24, with all games starting at 4:30 p.m. EAWR then travel to Hardin Calhoun on March 27 and hosts Columbia March 28, with both games also starting at 4:30 p.m.

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