Emery baseball advances to second round

By GARY ARRINGTON Sports Writer

This is not where the Emery High baseball team wanted to be after the opening weekend of the Utah State 2-A baseball playoffs. The Spartans continue play this week with a 1-1 record when play resumes this week in the Salt Lake valley.
As expected, Emery easily dispatched Rowland Hall in five innings with an 18-0 win. Emery scored nine runs in the bottom of the first inning, three in the second inning and six in the fourth inning to open play as was expected of them. Emery had 18 base hits in the game with Gavin McDermott hitting both a double and a triple to lead the way. Marco Mota had three hits including a double and Ethan Tuttle had three singles in the game.
Brayden Burke pitched the complete game to grab the win. Burke struck out seven, gave up three walks and allowed just a single base hit that was turned into a double play.
Emery then faced Beaver on their home field and the Beavers avenged a loss a year earlier when they were rated the top 2-A team in the state all season long only to see Emery come to town and defeat them. This season, Emery has been the top rated team and the Spartans came up short in this 4-3 game.
Dillon Wilstead pitched the game for Emery. Wilstead gave up just four hits and four walks in the game while striking out 11 batters. Unfortunately for the Spartans was that when Beaver actually got on base, they got on base together.
In the bottom of the first inning, Beaver’s second and third batters walked and they were followed by a double and a single and three of their runs scored in the inning. Two singles in the bottom of the seventh inning gave Beaver the win with two outs and Emery came up short of sending the game to extra innings and grabbing the win.
Emery also had just four hits in the game. In the second inning, Mota doubled and Tanner Lake followed with a homerun as Emery scored twice to narrow the deficit to 3-2. In the fifth inning, Lake singled and Ridge singled him home as Emery tied the score at 3-3.
While Emery had only the four base hits, the Spartans actually hit the ball hard throughout the game. Twelve of Emery’s outs were balls hit to the outfield with Beaver players constantly throughout the game making diving catches and great plays to deprive the Spartans of getting something going. Only one Emery batter struck out in this game.
Region 15 partners Grand and North Sevier, the two teams that defeated Emery in region action this season, each went 2-0 in their games last Saturday and will face Beaver and Manti in the quarterfinals this week. Emery will continue play in the state tournament with a game Thursday morning at 11 a.m. at Taylorsville High School against region 15 foe South Sevier.
With a win they will play that afternoon at Kearns High School, with a loss they would be done.