Solon Downs Class 2A Top-ranked Mid-Prairie For Second Straight Win Over Ranked Opponent
Ryan Murken
Your Prep Sports
SOLON – Every season as a turning point.
If Solon stays hot over the next few weeks, finishes the regular season on a high note and makes a deep postseason run the Spartans may just look back at the last 24 hours as the pivotal point of its season.
Solon capped a tough two-day stretch that featured three games against ranked opponents with a 7-6 walkoff win over Class 2A top-ranked Mid-Prairie (11-3) on Tuesday at the Solon Nature and Recreation Area.
“I think we are finally getting hot,” Solon junior Brett White said. “The first few weeks were kind of rough coming off of track season but we are finally hitting our groove and everyone is playing really well right now.”
Solon split a WAMAC doubleheader with Class 3A sixth-ranked Marion on Monday bouncing back from a 13-3 loss in the opening to win the nightcap 7-5.
On Tuesday the Spartans scored the winning run on a Mid-Prairie throwing error in the bottom of the seventh to improve to 9-8 on the season.
“Coach just said after that first game yesterday that we needed to come back and compete and get ready to play,” Solon sophomore Nolan Seagren said. “We came back and got after it.”
White had two hits and scored two runs and Seagren drove in three runs and had a clutch two-run double during a five-run Spartan fifth inning as Solon snapped a nine-game winning streak for Mid-Prairie on Tuesday.
The win snapped a two-game losing streak for Solon against the Golden Hawks who had scored 22 runs in consecutive wins over the Spartans the past two seasons.
“We’ve lost to these guys two years in a row and we haven’t played very well against them,” White said. “Today we wanted to come out and win and really compete so it was good.”
Solon got six strong innings from junior Kaden Hanson and overcame a late Mid-Prairie rally to win for the fourth time in its last six games.
The Spartans erased a 2-1 deficit in the fifth, sending 10 batters to the plate in a five-run outburst.
Seagren had the big hit, a two-run, opposite field double to left center field that gave Solon a 5-2 lead.
“I got to two strikes and my two-strike approach has been pretty good all year,” Seagren said. “I just tried to keep that approach, put the ball in play and score some runs and that’s what happened.”
Mid-Prairie responded with four runs on the top of the seventh inning.
With two outs Brady Weber hit an RBI double to cut the lead to one and Brock Harland followed with an RBI single to left that tied the game at 6-6.
Solon got the game-winner in the bottom of the inning when Gehrig Turner drew a leadoff walk and scored on a two-out throwing error.
“We preach the two-strike approach and having good at bats and that’s what won us the ball game,” White said. “Our bottom has done a really good job and today they had some really good at bats that were huge.”
Six different Spartans had a hit as Solon finished with eight hits as a team.
Hanson allowed three runs on six hits over six innings striking out one and walking three.
“I think this can boost us into the rest of this week and next week,” Seagren said. “I think the last couple games have been good for our entire team.”
Mid-Prairie 000 110 4 – 6 11 3
Solon 100 050 1 – 7 8 2
W – Tyson Wheeler L – Carson Pence
2B – SOL: Brett White, Nolan Seagren. MP: Karson Grout, Brady Weber
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