Reynolds, Mustangs put it all together
JASON LAWRENCE/DAILY FORUM
North Nodaway junior Koby Reynolds went 4-for-4 with four RBI in the Mustangs’ 11-1 win over East Atchison Monday afternoon in Hopkins, including the final blow — a two-run single in the bottom of the sixth to invoke the mercy rule. Reynolds also struck out 14 in six innings of work while also surrendering just five hits and one walk.
As Koby Reynolds reared back, his grip slipped and the pitch sailed over the batter’s head.
Cat calls of ‘Nice pitch, Koby,’ rang out from behind the junior hurler. Reynolds cracked a smile.
After the day Reynolds’ had in North Nodaway’s 11-1 win over East Atchison Monday afternoon, one errant knuckleball in the top of the sixth inning wasn’t about to keep him from savoring his best outing of the season.
“I can throw it (the knuckleball) in practice, but sometimes in games it doesn’t work out too well,” Reynolds said.
Pretty much everything else Reynolds threw Monday went exactly as scripted as Reynolds punched out 14 in six innings of five-hit, no earned run work.
“Tonight we didn’t have our big fall apart inning and we played pretty good,” North Nodaway head coach Andrew Webster said. “… Koby was on fire tonight. He’s been battling with a sore shoulder, but when he comes out hot, he can do that. Tonight it looks like he’s back, which is good.”
After going into the sixth inning Friday night against the Wolves tied 5-5 before losing 15-5 in the bottom of the sixth, the Mustangs made sure to avoid putting themselves into a similar situation Monday.
Sophomore shortstop Peyton Coleman led off with a single, stole second and the scored on an error after sophomore third baseman Daytona Lutz tried to lay down a sacrifice bunt, but made it safely to second base instead. Then Reynolds helped his own cause with an RBI single through the hole and with one out, junior catcher Ben Hart’s sacrifice fly gave Reynolds a three run cushion heading into the second.
Turned out to be more than enough.
Reynolds struck out all three Wolves batters he faced in the second inning, sitting down the first two on curve balls before blowing away Dayton Murry with the fastball to get out of the inning on exactly nine pitches.
“It’s fun to watch that stuff,” Webster said.
The Mustangs added two more runs in the third on a fielder’s choice by Lutz, which allowed senior Colt McCoy to scamper home after a leadoff single, and an RBI single by Reynolds.
East Atchison picked up its only run of the contest in the top of the third when Garrett Ball singled with one out and moved to second as the ball was bobbled in the outfield. He stole third, and scored as Hart’s throw sailed into left field.
With two outs, Brody Cooper singled and Jase Barnes walked, but Reynolds went back to his curveball to set down Andrew Thomas and end the threat.
An RBI single from freshman right fielder Tyler Philpott in the bottom of the inning pushed the advantage back to five and two more Mustangs tapped home plate in the bottom of the fourth when Hart’s RBI single scored Reynolds and sophomore left fielder Dakota Smyser crossed the plate as Hart got caught in a rundown trying to steal second.
Reynolds worked himself out of the only other jam he faced in the fifth inning when Dylan Jeffords singled and Cooper reached on an error and then stole second. The junior then struck out Barnes with a knee-buckling curveball before throwing Thomas an eye-level fastball to escape unscathed.
“I was in the stretch when they were on first and second, and I don’t like pitching out of the stretch, really. I can’t throw as hard, I feel like,” Reynolds said. “Once they got on second and third, I went back to the windup and threw a lot harder.
“Friday we saw that (Thomas) can’t hit the inside fastball very well or the curveball, so me and Ben just talked about sticking to the curveball with him and maybe bringing the fastball at the end after we gave him three or four curveballs. He watched two in a row and Ben called fastball high.”
Junior center fielder Wyatt Tate led off the home half of the sixth with a single, moved to second on a wild pitch by Barnes and scored on Coleman’s RBI triple. After Lutz was hit by a pitch, Reynolds finished what he started by roping his fourth hit of the night through the hole to score both Coleman and Lutz and return the favor from Friday night.
“On any given night, I feel like we can hang with anybody as long as we avoid that fall apart inning,” Webster said. “Tonight we did and we played really well.”
The Mustangs (2-9) are the No. 6 seed in the Class 1, District 16 baseball tournament, which begins at 4:30 p.m. Friday at Beal Park in Maryville. North Nodaway will face Braymer (7-4), the No. 3 seed, in the tournament’s opening game.
“This is when you want to be peaking, right before playoff time,” Webster said. “… We’re starting to get there. It’s fun to be apart of. We’ve just got to be patient. We’ve got young players and I think they’re starting to figure everything out.”
JASON LAWRENCE/DAILY FORUM
North Nodaway junior catcher Ben Hart takes a cut at a pitch during the Mustangs’ 11-1 win over East Atchison Monday. Hart was 1-for-1 with an RBI single to go along with a sacrifice fly and a walk in the six-inning victory.
JASON LAWRENCE/DAILY FORUM
North Nodaway senior Colt McCoy bloops a base hit out to right field during the Mustangs’ six-inning victory over East Atchison Monday in Hopkins. McCoy was 1-for-2 with a run scored in the 11-1 win.
JASON LAWRENCE/DAILY FORUM
North Nodaway sophomore shortstop Peyton Coleman recorded a pair of hits Monday, including this run-scoring triple in the bottom of the sixth to help the Mustangs to an 11-1 win over the visiting East Atchison Wolves Monday afternoon.
JASON LAWRENCE/DAILY FORUM
North Nodaway junior hurler Koby Reynolds delivered his best outing of the season in the Mustangs’ regular season finale, an 11-1 win, Monday afternoon in Hopkins. Reynolds struck out 14 East Atchison batters while allowing just one free pass and five hits in six innings of work.
