ALTON - Hayden Garner is one of the leaders of the Alton Post 126 Senior Legion baseball team that has helped the team make a state tournament appearance.
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On the night he was interviewed, Alton beat Highland in a best-of-three series. The Legionnaires won the first game by a score of 9-0 and game two by 11-0.
Garner pitched the second game going all five innings. He picked up three strikeouts and only allowed a single hit.
He mentioned that he'd been struggling with his curveball recently, but it was on last night and so was his fastball.
Hayden is a Tucker's Automotive Repair & Tire Male Athlete of Month for Marquette.
He added that it's much easier going out on the mound when your team is up by so many runs and said that there wasn't much pressure going into these couple of games against Highland.
The funny part about Hayden being on this summer Legion team is that he plays on it mainly with players from the cross-town rival Alton High kids.
Alton Post 126 Sr. is made up of players from Alton High, Marquette, and Civic Memorial.
Hayden mentioned that it was a little weird at first playing with those guys but everyone was always nice to him.
Garner will be returning to Marquette next year where he'll once again be a key part of the Explorers' rotation. Last season with Marquette, he boasted a 3-2 record and pitched 23 1/3 innings. Throughout his appearances, he picked up 31 strikeouts.
It's always a fun time when the Explorers take on the Redbirds, especially for Hayden who gets to play with and against all of his friends. Marquette lost to Alton last season 5-4, so surely Hayden is looking to get even.
