The Emporia High baseball team dropped a pair of home games Friday night at Soden’s Grove, falling to Manhattan 10-4 in the first game before dropping Game Two, 8-6.
In Game One, Manhattan staked itself to a 4-0 lead with four runs in the second inning, and Emporia never could reign Manhattan back in. The Indians plated two more runs in the fourth and another three in the fifth before EHS could crack the scoreboard with a single run in the fifth that made it 9-1.
After Manhattan put up one more run in the seventh inning, Emporia mounted a slight rally with a three-run bottom half of the frame, but the Spartans could get no closer.
“We had guys get on base,” EHS coach Mike Strickland said, “it just wasn’t enough that we could go out and finish it.”
EHS recorded five hits in Game One, with Derek Nielsen and Zach Gifford each recording doubles to lead the way offensively. Michael Knight took the loss on the mound.
In Game Two, Emporia High got out to leads of 4-0 and 6-3 before Manhattan mounted a comeback in the final two innings.
EHS scored once in the first inning and then plated three more runs in the second to go up, 4-0. After the Indians scored twice in the third and once in the fourth to make it 4-3, Emporia answered with a two-run fourth that gave EHS a 6-3 lead.
It would not hold though, as Manhattan tied the game with a three-run sixth inning that knotted the game at 6, and then added to it with a two-run seventh that doomed the Spartans.
“We were playing really good baseball up to that point,” Strickland said.
Jacob Loucks took the loss on the mound for EHS.
The Spartans (1-7) are back in action on Monday with a home doubleheader against Topeka High.
Manhattan 10, Emporia 4
Game One
Manhattan 040 230 1 — 10 9 0
Emporia 000 010 3 — 4 5 4
W — Moran. L — Knight. 2B — Man: Wall. Emp: Gifford, Nielsen.
Manhattan 8, Emporia 6
Game Two
Manhattan 002 103 2 — 8 10 1
Emporia 130 200 0 — 6 5 3
W — Moran. L — Loucks. 2B — Man: Wall, Debord. Emp: Stone.
EHS boys golf wins Salina South Invite
The Emporia High boys golf team won the 12-team Salina South Invitational on Friday, recording a team score of 311.
Individually, Fletcher Harder added to Emporia’s title-winning day with a first-place finish, carding a 74 to take the title.
He was followed by a seventh-place finish by Bren Fisher (78), a ninth-place finish by Matt McAnarney (79) and a 12th-place finish by Zach Young (80), which rounded out the EHS scoring.
Eric Reimer also carded an 80, while Spencer Anderson finished with an 84.