Shelor, Mounties Top Alma 8-5

By Paul Nielsen

Posted: March 14, 2010 at 7:33 a.m.
Updated: March 14, 2010 at 7:34 a.m.

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ROGERS — Alex Shelor is no longer an unknown commodity at pitcher for Rogers High.

Coming into the season, Mounties coach Matt Melson didn’t know where Shelor would fit into Rogers’ pitching plans.

Shelor answered that question Saturday afternoon with a complete-game victory as Rogers defeated Alma 8-5 on the final day of the Best Sports Classic.

Shelor, who also starts in the infield, survived an 11-hit Alma barrage by working out of several jams while striking out six and walking two over seven innings.

“Shelor was kind of an unknown coming into this year,” Melson said. “But Shelor went right up there and battled with them, and that was positive to see. It seemed to me that he was getting stronger there in the last inning. He may factor into our conference plans in a relief role, Shelor showed us he will throw strikes and that is the name of the game.”

Shelor also got plenty of help from the Mountie offense as leadoff batter Marshall Krupka slugged a two-run home run while Andy Couture hit a solo home run. Six of the Mounties’ 11 hits went for extra bases and all nine Rogers players in the batting order had at least one hit.

“The home runs kind of jump-started our offense,” Melson said. “Lot of extra-base hits. This tournament was great for us.”

Alma could never get over the hump after falling behind 3-0, but the Airedales cut the Rogers lead to 6-5 with a run off an error in the top of the sixth.

However, Rogers (3-2) used two errors, a wild pitch and a key two-run single by sophomore Chris Quesada for a three-run cushion going to the top of the seventh.

“Up three versus being up one is big,” Melson said. “That’s night and day, and you could tell that gave Shelor even more confidence.”

Aaron Craig had three singles for Alma and Austin Duerr added a solo home run, but coach Kevin Edwards said the Airedales could never deliver the big hit with runners in scoring position. Alma stranded eight runners, including four in scoring position.

“We had chances and we had batters up in situations, but we didn’t come through right there,” Edwards said. “Rogers made the plays when they had too. We battled right back when we got down and that is what we have to have when we get to our conference.”

Rogers used a pair of doubles and a single to take a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the third. Shelor started the inning with a double and scored when Jake Rylee followed with another double. Alex Schroeder then hit an RBI single to score Rylee for the early lead.

Alma tied the game in the fourth when Austin Duerr hit a one-out solo home run that cut the lead to 2-1 that was the start of five straight hits for the Airedales. Austin McCourt tied the game with an RBI single.

Rogers then used the home runs by Krupka and Couture for a 5-2 lead in the home half of the fourth. Krupka’s first home run of the year cleared the scoreboard in right-center.

Alma got right back in the game in the fifth when Ken Pearson and Aaron Craig hit back-to-back two-out RBI singles to cut the Rogers lead to 5-4.

But Rogers used an RBI double by Krupka in the fifth and Quesada’s two-RBI single in the sixth to win for the third time in four games.

Prep Baseball

Best Sports Classic

ROGERS HIGH 8, ALMA 5

Alma 000 221 0 — 5 11 3

Rogers 002 312 x — 8 11 1

Oliver and Bradley; Shelor and Rylee. W — Shelor, 1-0. L — Oliver, 0-1. HRs — Rogers, Krupka (1), Couture (1); Alma, Duerr.

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