With an important game against District 12-AA leader Page looming later in the week, the Marshall County Tigers made sure they took care of business on Monday night when they defeated the Hickman County Bulldogs 11-1 in six innings at home.

Bolstered by a seven-run first inning, the Tigers (12-6, 8-3 District) pounded out 13 hits against Hickman County starting pitcher Greg Coiner and reliever Damian Kiest to go along with six walks and three Bulldog errors.

Hitter on fire

Having recorded seven hits in his last three ballgames, MCHS second baseman Hayden Bailey continued to swing a hot bat on Monday night, as he went 3-for-4 with a double, 2 RBI, and a run scored. Ryan Richardson (3 RBI), Ryan McDaniel, Aaron Hobbs, and starting pitcher Matt Sharp each tallied two hits for the Tigers as well, while Dylan McKnight and Zack Kirby both added a hit and a RBI..

"We came out swinging the bats well. We've swung the bats well the last few games and kept it up tonight. Maybe we're getting in a groove with tournament time coming up," said Marshall County coach Steve Reese.

Sharp picked up the win on the mound for MCHS and allowed one run over three innings on three hits while notching three strikeouts. McDaniel then came on in relief of Sharp and yielded just one hit in three scoreless innings of work to go along with three strikeouts.

Brady Cartwright went 2-for-3 with a double and a triple to pace Hickman County (6-11, 2-9 District) at the plate, while Cole Patten and Bryan Garren both singled.

One wild inning

The Bulldogs grabbed a 1-0 lead in the top of the first on a RBI groundout by Logan Hill, but the Tigers landed a haymaker in the bottom half of the inning, as they crossed home plate seven times in the frame on the strength of a Hickman County error, a passed ball, a pair of RBI singles from McDaniel and Kirby, a Richardson two-run single, and a bases loaded walk from McKnight to seize a 7-1 advantage.

In the top of the second, the Bulldogs had a chance to cut into the deficit and put runners on first and third with no outs thanks to a leadoff double from Cartwright and a MCHS error. Sharp, though, bore down and retired the next three Hickman County batters on a strikeout, a groundout, and fly out to escape the inning unscathed.

Runs keep coming

Marshall County extended their lead to 8-1 in the bottom of the second when McDaniel scored on a RBI single by Richardson after leading off the inning with a single and advancing to third on two passed balls.

After McDaniel worked around a leadoff triple by Cartwright in the top of the fourth, the Tigers pushed across two runs in the bottom of the fifth to open up a 10-1 advantage. Following a leadoff walk by Grayson Wiles, Houghton laced a double down the left field line to put runners on second and third, before Bailey roped a two-run double into the left centerfield gap.

Marshall County then brought the mercy rule into effect in the bottom of the sixth by plating a run with the help of walks from Chandler Harmon and Richardson and two Bulldog errors to cap their 11-1 triumph.