By TYLER HENRY
Salina Post contributor
The Southeast of Saline baseball team started postseason play with a bang, rolling the Nickerson Panthers in a 15-1 mercy rule victory to advance to the regional semifinals.
Nickerson collected just their second win of the season in a shock play-in upset of Smoky Valley, but the Panthers were ill-equipped to handle an SES lineup that tallied ten hits in just four innings.
“We looked confident and we’ve been playing well recently,” Trojan head coach Mike Garretson said. “It was good to get back on the field after a week off and perform like this but we know our next game won’t be that comfortable.”
On the hill Jaython Mathis went the distance without allowing a single earned run, surrendering just three hits, walking nobody, and striking out six.
“Jaython pitched great,” Garretson said. “He was in control the whole night and his defense behind him only made one error. We made smart plays and we were really solid through the lineup.”
Eight of the nine spots in the Trojan order tacked on at least one hit and Southeast remained patient at the plate collecting eight walks and three HBP.
Southeast will now turn its attention to a semifinal matchup with the hosts in Halstead. The 13-8 Dragons defeated Hesston in a 4-3 nailbiter on Monday to advance to the second round.
“Halstead is pretty impressive, they’ve got seven seniors and we know they’ll give us a run but we’ve got a pretty good team too and we’ll be ready for it.”
First pitch between the Trojans and Dragons is set for 2 pm with the winner advancing to face either Haven or Hillsboro in the championship game at 6 pm.