St. Andrew's baseball advances in state tournament

St. Andrew’s kept their back-to-back MHSAA 2A state title hopes alive on Tuesday night, defeating Loyd Star 9-3 in a decisive game three of the first round of the 2A state tournament. 

After a slow start and trailing 2-1 going into the bottom of the fourth inning, the Saints found a spark in the back half of the game, scoring two runs to regain the lead in the fourth, four runs in the fifth, and two more in the sixth to win a do-or-die game. 

“We didn’t start off the game very sharp, and once we started to get on base, it felt like we couldn’t get that knockout punch,” St. Andrew’s Head Coach Mark Fanning said. “We were able to get a lot of walks, which is part of our gameplan, and once we finally got those big clutch hits, it really separated us.”

Even when trailing in the fourth inning, St. Andrew’s never flinched, responding in a big way to come away with the win. Even though the Saints are on the younger side and have had to look to newer players to contribute, the program’s championship experience from last year prevailed and definitely played a factor in the win.

“We know where we are supposed to be and we have a group that is used to winning,” Fanning said. “Some of our guys were not on the field for the state championship last year, but they were a part of it and they feel that when the game is tight, we are supposed to win.”

Mark Eaton, Cash Myrick, and Stone Myrick all finished with multiple hits and were a major reason that the Saints were able to get things going in the final innings as well. 

On the mound, Cash Myrick put together a very strong performance, throwing five innings, with three strikeouts and giving up three earned runs. Myrick had made only a few starts on the mound all season and has typically been a reliever for the Saints, but answered the call in a must-win game three to keep the season alive for St. Andrew’s.

“We knew he wanted the ball and we knew he would throw strikes,” Fanning said. “Being a guy that is normally a reliever for us and has only made one or two starts all season, we were hoping to get three or four innings out of him, but ended up getting five plus, so he definitely did his part.”

St. Andrew’s will move on to the second round of the MHSAA 2A playoffs and will look to continue their quest for repeat 2A state championships. The Saints will take on Clarkdale in the second round, with game one set for Thursday at Clarkdale, game two Friday at St. Andrew’s, and game three Monday at Clarkdale if necessary. All games are set to start at 7 PM.