Wildcats split with rival Paola on Senior Night

Louisburg senior Beckett Rasmussen runs in from right field to make the catch Thursday against Paola on Senior Night at Lewis-Young Park.

It was a busy couple days for the Louisburg baseball team last week as it hosted Paola and Eudora and the Wildcats got a big win against their rival on Senior Night.

After Louisburg lost the doubleheader opener, 15-6, to Paola on Thursday at Lewis-Young Park, the Wildcats made sure they didn’t end their Senior Night on a sour note. Louisburg held off a late Paola rally to take the nightcap, 8-7.

Senior Logan McClellan pitched the final 1-plus innings to get the save, including a strikeout with the go-ahead runners on base to secure the win. Fellow senior Jakob Krause got the win as he gave no earned runs in almost four innings of work.

Paola took a 2-0 lead after the first inning, but the Wildcats struck back as they scored a run in the second and six in the third to take a 7-2 advantage. Each team scored a run in the fifth, but Paola scored three in the sixth to cut into the Wildcat lead.

Madden Rutherford had a big game offensively for the Wildcats as he reached base in all four at-bats. The Louisburg junior recorded three singles, 2 RBIs and a walk to help ignite the Wildcat offense.

Freshman Matt Madison had two-run single in the win and McClellan also had two hits and an RBI for the Wildcats. Krause finished with an RBI single, while Andrew Krause, Brandon Doles and Michael Rogers also had a hit for Louisburg.

It was a good way to end what was a memorable night as seven Wildcat seniors were honored in-between games during a Senior Night ceremony. Beckett Rasmussen, Logan McClellan, Jakob Krause, Chase Norton, Noah Larson, Michael Rogers and Blue Caplinger were all recognized for their time with the Wildcat program.

In the opener, the Wildcats found themselves down early to Paola. The Panthers scored eight runs in the first inning and never looked back as they took a 12-1 lead going into the bottom of the sixth inning.

Louisburg answered with five runs in the sixth to keep the game going, but the Panthers scored three more times in the seventh to seal the win. Paola pounded out 15 runs on 16 hits to get the split of Louisburg.

The Wildcats did have 10 hits of their own, but had a tough time getting those into runs. Andrew Krause led the Louisburg attack with three hits and an RBI and Rogers had a two-run single for the Wildcats.

McClellan had a pair of hits, including a double, and an RBI for Louisburg. Madison also finished with two hits for Louisburg, while Rasmussen had an RBI single and Rutherford finished with a base hit.

EUDORA EDGES LOUISBURG IN REGULAR SEASON FINALE

Louisburg hosted Eudora in a make-up game Friday at Lewis-Young Park in what was its final regular season contest.

The Wildcats were able to outhit the Cardinals, but came up short in the run department as they fell 5-2 to Eudora.

A pair of freshman pitchers helped keep the game close for Louisburg as Brandon Doles pitched the first four innings and gave up just two earned runs and struck out three. Maverick Rockers threw the final three frames and gave up one earned run and struck out a batter.

Sophomore Matt Madison led the Wildcat offense with three hits, including a double and an RBI. Madden Rutherford and Noah Larson each had two hits each, while Doles, Rockers and Logan McClellan had a single each.

The game was tied at 1-all going into the top of the fourth inning, but Eudora struck for two runs and then added insurance runs in the sixth and seventh innings to seal the win.

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