(Atlantic) The Atlantic baseball team continued its strong stretch, winning four of its last five games with an 8-2 victory over Shenandoah on Thursday.
Kale Jensen earned the win on the mound, pitching five innings and giving up two runs on three hits, while striking out five and walking two. Gavin McLaren closed the door with a two-inning save, allowing no runs on two hits with two strikeouts and one walk.
The Trojans had one of their best offensive performances of the season, scoring eight runs on eleven hits, including two doubles, one triple, and a home run.
Atlantic came out swinging in the bottom of the first. Hudson McLaren led off with a single, Jensen drew a walk, Zayden Parker followed with an RBI single, and Sawyer Tarrell plated Jensen on a groundout. In the second, Keston Schmitt opened with a base hit, and Hudson McLaren added another RBI single to make it 3-0.
The Trojans broke it open in the fourth with four runs on five hits. Jensen smashed a two-run double, Gavin McLaren legged out an RBI triple, and Colin Rudy, Collin Harris, and Parker each added singles in the inning to give the home team a 7-0 advantage.
Dalton Athen sparked Shenandoah’s offense in the fifth inning with a two-run double to cut the deficit to 7-2. But Atlantic’s Kale Jensen quickly answered, launching a solo home run over the centerfield fence to secure the 8-2 win. Athen finished the night with a single, a double, and two RBI. Eli Cameron went 2-for-3 with a pair of singles, while Zane McManis added a base hit for the Mustangs.
For the Trojans, Zayden Parker led the way at the plate, going a perfect 3-for-3 with a walk. Jensen added a home run and a double to his stat line, Hudson McLaren chipped in two singles, and Gavin McLaren crushed a triple. Keston Schmitt, Colin Rudy, and Collin Harris each contributed a hit in the win.
Atlantic heads to Kuemper on Saturday for a 11:00 a.m. start to finish a rain-delayed doubleheader from Monday. The Trojans took the first game 7-3. Shenandoah returns to action Monday in a doubleheader against Harlan.
