Emery baseball and softball pick up region wins

By GARY ARRINGTON Sports Writer

Two top-ranked baseball teams went at it last week at Emery High School with Grand coming out on top of the Spartans by the score of 9-5. The loss was Emery’s first of the region season. Emery rebounded later in the week with a convincing region road victory at Monticello by the score of 14-3. The Grand game did not go as planned when starting pitcher Ethan Tuttle walked the first four batters and then allowed the fifth batter a double and just like that Emery was down 3-0. Grand went on to score all their runs in the first three innings of the game and built a formidable lead that the Spartans could not overcome.
The Spartans battled back throughout the game and never gave up despite the hole they were in. In the fourth inning, Gavin McDermott scored Emery’s first run after hitting a single and scoring on a double by Tyson Roper.
Emery scored twice more in the fifth inning. Mark DeBry got hit by a pitch and two batters later, Tappen Draper hit a triple and Draper scored when Tuttle singled. Emery scored twice more in the seventh inning to get their final point total. Ridge Nielson singled, Draper walked and both scored when McDermott doubled to get the runs batted in.
At Monticello, Emery scored early and often as this game was never in doubt from the onset. Nielson and Draper both drew walks to open the game and Tuttle followed those walks with a home run to put the Spartans up 3-0 in the first.
Emery scored six more times in the next inning to leave no doubt about who the winner was going to be. Curtis Healy led off with a single followed by DeBry singling. DeBry was out when Nielson hit into fielder’s choice for the first out of the inning. Draper then doubled followed by Tuttle flying out to left field for the second out.
Following the second out, the next four batters all got base hits. McDermott singled, Roper homered, Drexler Tanner doubled and Tanner Lake singled.
Emery scored twice more in the third as DeBry and Nielson both singled and scored. Draper also had a single in the inning. Emery scored a single run in the fifth inning after Nielson walked and made his way around the bases. Emery’s final two runs came in the sixth inning. Roper led off the inning with his second home run of the game followed by Drexler hitting a single. DeBry and Nielson again both singled to score Drexler.
Monticello scored their three runs in the third inning as starting pitcher Healy allowed a homerun after two batters got on, one by an error. All three runs were unearned. This week the Spartans travel to South Sevier on Tuesday in a region contest and then will host Gunnison in a non-region game on Wednesday and San Juan on Friday in another region game.