Buckeye blanks Black River 10-0 behind Heers' dominant start
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | T | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BUC | 0 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 10 |
| BLA | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Buckeye rolled past Black River 10-0 on Friday at Buckeye High School, using a steady early offensive push and a dominant outing from pitcher No. 9 Heers to secure the shutout. The Bucks broke the game open over the second and third innings, then let Heers control the rest.
Buckeye opened the scoring in the bottom of the second inning when Hamman singled home a run. The Bucks added three more in the third to take firm command. Costigan brought in a run on a groundout, Stough followed with an RBI double down the left-field line, and Hamman added another run-producing groundout as Buckeye built a 4-0 lead.
That was more than enough support for Heers, who turned in one of the sharpest performances of the young season. The right-hander worked six innings, allowed just one hit, gave up no runs, struck out nine and walked two. Black River starter Stuart took the loss after allowing five runs on seven hits over three innings, with no strikeouts and three walks.
Buckeye finished with 12 hits and production throughout the lineup. Hamman drove in three runs from the No. 8 spot despite going 1-for-3. Perkins, Stough, Heers and Brown each collected two hits. Brown also stole two bases as the Bucks kept pressure on Black River on the bases and at the plate.
Just as important, Buckeye played a clean game defensively and did not commit an error. The combination of sure-handed defense, timely hitting and power on the mound gave the Bucks control from the second inning on, and Black River never found a way to answer at Buckeye Senior High School.
