The Wayne Seniors struck for five early runs and their pitching shut down Ponca in a 8-0 win in the final game of the opening round of the Class B Area 5 tournament Friday at Hank Overin Field.
Wayne got two runs in the first inning on four hits in the inning. Zane Jackson had an RBI single to score Tyler Lutt and Payten Gamble came home on a fielder’s choice.
In the second, Wayne added three more runs, highlighted by an Adam Bentjen RBI single, scoring Brennen O’Reilly, and a two-run double by Gamble, scoring Bentjen and Lutt.
Wayne's offense was silent until the seventh, when Justin Dean cleared the bases with a three-run double to put the game out of reach.
That was enough for Wayne’s hurlers, as Caden Korth threw four innings of one-hit baseball before Zane Jackson and Josh Lutt came on to finish off Ponca in the final three innings. The trio combined to limit Ponca to three hits in the shutout. Dean was 3-for-3 and Tyler Lutt had two hits to lead Wayne's 10-hit attack.
The win for the sixth-seeded Wayne Seniors (16-11) was the only one of the day for a lower-seeded team, as second-seeded O’Neill beat Schuyler 17-1 while fourth-seeded Lakeview beat No. 5 Neligh 3-1. Top-seeded West Point had a first-round bye.
In other first-round matchups:
Lakeview edges Neligh 3-1 – Lakeview put up two runs early and got an insurance run in the fifth to advance. Tyler Garbers had a triple and a double and scored a run and Dominic Penne had two hits and scored a run for the winners. Clayton Anderson doubled and scored a run for Neligh.
O’Neill scores early in win over Schuyler – O’Neill put up four runs in the first inning and cruised to a 17-1 win over Schuyler. Schuyler loaded the bases in the first, but O’Neill turned a double play to get out of the early jam and responded with a big inning early, then scored 10 in the fourth to blow the game open.
Class B Area 5 at Hank Overin Field
(Seeds in parenthesis)
Friday, July 21 Results
Game 1 — (1) West Point bye.
Game 2 — (4) Lakeview 3, (5) Neligh 1
Game 3 — (6) Wayne 8, (3) Ponca 0
Game 4 — (2) O’Neill 17, (7) Schuyler 1 (5 inn.)
Saturday, July 22 Schedule
Game 5 — Neligh bye.
Game 6 — Ponca vs. Schuyler, 2 p.m.
Game 7 — West Point vs. Lakeview, 4:30 p.m.
Game 8 — Wayne vs. O’Neill, 7 p.m.
Sunday, July 23 Schedule
Game 9 — Loser Game 7 vs. Winner Game 6, 2 p.m.
Game 10 — Loser Game 8 vs. Neligh, 4:30 p.m.
Game 11 — Winner Game 7 vs. Winner Game 8, 7 p.m.
Monday, July 24 Schedule
Game 12 — Loser Game 11 vs. Winner Game 9, 5 p.m.
Game 13 — Winner Game 10 vs. Winner Game 11, 7:30 p.m.
Tuesday, July 25 Schedule
Game 14 — Championship, 5 p.m.
Game 15 — If needed, 30 minutes after Game 14 completion.
