South Central outhit Neoga and overcame four errors committed as the fifth-seeded Cougars beat the fourth-seeded Indians 6-3 in the quarterfinals of the National Trail Conference Baseball Tournament on Monday. Luke Shumate got the game underway with a leadoff double and after South Central picked up two quick outs, Aiden Strobel singled to put runners at the corners. Colton Tockstein then reached base on an error that allowed Shumate to score as the Cougars grabbed an early 1-0 lead. After holding Neoga scoreless in their first at bat, South Central went back to work and loaded the bases with a pair of walks and a single by Jordan Smith before a single by Aiden Hoover drove in two runs and Ryker Dodson drove in anther with a double to right field for a 4-0 Cougar lead. South Central tacked on two more runs in the inning when Aiden Strobel reached base on a throwing error on his bunt and Tockstein followed that with a double to left field as the Cougars went up 6-0 midway through the second inning. Neoga was able to score one run in the bottom of the inning to cut the South Central lead down to five runs to 6-1 and added o two more in the bottom of the fourth inning cutting it to a 6-3 ballgame. That would be it for the game’s scoring though as neither team managed to score in the final three innings of play and South Central sealed the 6-3 and earned their spot in the tournament semifinals and guaranteed themselves two more games in the fall season. South Central will face top-seeded St. Anthony at 4:00pm on Wednesday in Effingham.
South Central Offense:
Luke Shumate – 3-3, 2 BB, 2 Doubles, 2 R
Aiden Hoover – 2-5, R, 2 RBI
Ryker Dodson – 1-4, Double, R, RBI
Aiden Strobel – 2-4
Colton Tockstein – 1-4, Double, RBI
Garrett Shumate – 1-3, BB
Eli Hiestand – BB, R
Jordan Smith – 1-4, R
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