ROGERS -- The first varsity start for Rogers High junior Harrison Heffley was a good one.
Heffley threw a one-hitter, and the left-handed pitcher struck out six as Rogers High defeated Siloam Springs 9-2 in the season opener at the Best Sport Classic.
Best Sports Classic
Rogers High 9, Siloam Springs 2
Siloam^000^011^0^ — ^2^2^2
Rogers^040^302^x^ — ^9^6^1
Cook, Bolstad (4) and Pruitt; Heffley, Dobler (5) and Ivey. W — Heffley, 1-0. L — Cook, 0-1. HRs — None.
Heffley retired the first nine Siloam Springs batters in order, including five on strikeouts, and he only gave up a single to Dawson Armstrong in the fourth inning. He walked three and hit one batter before leaving with a 7-1 lead in the fifth inning.
"We really like Harrison's stuff," said Rogers coach Matt Melson. "Harrison has swing and miss type stuff, and I think he can be a formidable pitcher for us. We have liked what we have been seeing out of him. I was proud of a lot of these guys; it was their first varsity experience."
Heffley said he gained confidence with every inning of work.
"I was a little nervous at the start, but I have been working hard at this," Heffley said. "It was good to come out and get a good start in my first innings of the year. The whole team came out and had a good start."
Rogers finished with six hits with Kyle Eason, Sage White and Jacob Ivey delivering run-scoring extra base hits. Eason hit a two-run triple in the fourth while Sage White smacked a two-run double in the second inning. Ivey added an RBI double in the sixth that gave the Mounties a 8-2 lead.
Rogers took control with four runs in the second inning as White delivered the big blow with a two-run double. Will Sanders started the second with a walk and scored on a wild pitch while Jay Young scored on an error after being hit by a pitch.
Rogers then added three more in the fourth behind Eason's triple and a RBI single by White.
Rogers hosts Alma at 5 p.m. today at Veterans Park and host Mountain Home at 4 p.m. Friday on the final day of the classic.
HARRISON 11, SILOAM SPRINGS 1
Hunter Marshall struck out eight and gave up just three hits as Harrison run-ruled Siloam Springs in six innings. Marshall walked three in 5 2/3 innings of work.
Harrison broke the game open with five runs in the fourth inning for a 6-0 lead. Tel Parker had a two-run double for the Goblins while Will Spry had a run-scoring double. Siles Huskey added two singles for Harrison.
Sports on 03/12/2015