The Macomb High baseball squad opened the final week of the regular season on a high note, blanking visiting Brown County 9-0 Tuesday afternoon in the team's home finale at Phil Bradley Field.
Senior pitcher Jaxon Barclay was masterful, pitching a two-hit shutout. He struck out two, walked one and hit a batter.
Barclay threw 87 pitches, 52 for strikes. The Bombers took a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first. Nick Elbe drew a one-out walk before moving to second when Drew Watson walked with two outs. Aiden Reynolds doubled to center, scoring Elbe and Watson.
Macomb then added four runs in second on the strength of five hits, an error and a run-scoring ground out.
Elbe and Watson had run-scoring singles, while Jake Ogle also knocked in a run with a ground out to third.
Macomb added a single run in the fourth and two more in the fifth. The Bombers finished with 12 hits with one error, while Brown County (18-4-2) was charged with three errors.
Reynolds had three hits and two runs batted in for MHS, while Watson and Ogle added two RBIs each.
Drew Taylor had two hits and two runs scored, while Elbe, Watson and Isaac Leinbach all scored twice apiece.
Micheal Kassing singled to center to open the fourth, while Wyatt Kassing singled to center with two outs in the seventh for Brown County’s two hits.
On Wednesday, the Bombers returned to the road, facing Liberty in non-conference play.
MHS tallied single runs in the first, sixth and seventh on the way to recording a 3-0 victory.
The Bombers improved to 19-11 on the season, while Liberty slipped to 12-11-1.
One day after Barclay’s two-hit shutout, Blaine Eddington and Tyler Schulz combined on a two-hit shutout.
Eddington pitched 5.1 innings of no-hit baseball, striking out 11 while walking four and hitting a batter.
Schulz pitched the final 1.2 innings, allowing two hits and two walks, striking out three.
Macomb scored in the first as Leinbach walked to open the game before Elbe was hit by a pitch.
Both runners moved up a base on a wild pitch with Leinbach scoring whenWatson grounded out to short.
The Bombers made it 2-0 in the sixth when Emmett Beck reached on an error by Liberty shortstop Brody Klauserbefore scoring on a double to left by Eddington.
Macomb’s final run came in the seventh when Elbe homered to center.
Eddington and Watson both recorded two hits with a run batted in.
Jake Fessler and Will Fessler had Liberty’s two hits, both singles.
Reed Sparrow pitched six innings for Liberty, allowing two runs, one earned, on five hits. He stuck out six, walked two and hit two batters.
Jack Wietholder pitched one inning, allowing one run on two hits, striking out one.
Macomb, 3-5 in Prairieland Conference play, is scheduled to play at Peoria Heights (4-18, 1-7 Prairieland) Friday in its final league contest before heading to Sunny Lane Field in Monmouth to face host Monmouth-Roseville in one final game before starting postseason play.
