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EDWARDSVILLE – Edwardsville's baseball team is expected to be one of the top teams in the St. Louis area once again this season.
The Tigers, who went unbeaten in the Southwestern Conference and finished 35-2 in 2015, got 2016 off to a good start Saturday morning, the Tigers getting a 10-0, five-inning win over a Civic Memorial team that had won its first two games of the year over Mount Vernon and Belleville East.
“We got a lot of guys who continue to compete,” said Tiger coach Tim Funkhouser. “Last year, we had a similar type of setting...this next week or so, we'll find out a lot about our team and who can do what. We got a lot of guys who like playing the game, that approach the game well and have ability.
“Our goal is to keep pushing that forward.”
“Tim kept bring in pinch hitters and every one of them got a hit,” said Eagle coach Gary Breuning. “They're deep, they're good, they're rated No. 2 in the state; they're very talented. We thought we had something to build on after beating Mount Vernon and Belleville East, but today, I thought we came out flat.
“You gotta be able to compete every game; I don't think we competed very well today...a lot of that goes to Edwardsville credit. They got some studs to put out there, I don't know how else to put it. They're good.”
The Tigers didn't waste much time getting on the board; Dylan Harris led off with a walk, stole second and came home on a two-out Jake Garella double in the bottom of the first. In the third, Harris led off with a double and came home on an error that got Garella on base with two out. Joel Quirin walked with Harris at third after a wild pitch and a second error chased Garella home to make it 3-0.
A bases-loaded, two-out double by Colin Clayton brought home two more runs in the fourth, Hansel and Wallace scoring, to extend the lead to 5-0 and then EHS brought the game to an end with a five-run fifth, highlighted by a Trey Riley double to lead off the inning, Daniel Reed stroking a two-run, pinch-hit single, Mark Smith hitting a RBI pinch-hit single and Quirin ending the game with a two-RBI single with bring in Smith and Andrew Yancik.
Riley got the win, tossing three innings and striking out five while walking one; Garella threw two innings, conceding a hit and a walk while fanning two. Corey Price took the loss for the Eagles, giving up two earned runs, three hits and two walks while striking out three; Collin Hall gave up eight earned runs and six hits while walking four and striking out two in two innings of work.
The Eagles visit Breese Central Tuesday, then host Piasa Southwestern Thursday and Alton in a March 26 doubleheader; the Tigers host Moline Monday.
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