Patriots finish at .500

BLUFFTON - The Patriots dropped their final regular-season game on Memorial Day, leaving them with a .500 record heading into the tournament.

Jay County scored four times in the sixth inning, but could not complete the comeback Monday in a 9-8 loss to the Bluffton Tigers.

The team also split its games as hosts of Saturday's Patriot Invitational, falling 6-5 to the Class 1A No. 3 Cowan Blackhawks and winning 12-2 in five innings over the Tippencanoe Valley Vikings. West Vigo, the No. 3 team in Class 3A, defeated Cowan 7-5 in the championship game.

The Patriots (11-11) open Class 4A sectional play at Homestead Friday at 5 p.m. against the seventh-ranked host Spartans.

Senior Billy Wellman carried the JCHS offense against Bluffton with a 3-for-4 effort that included a home run. He scored once and had five RBIs.

Phil Powell added two hits and two runs, Andre Duke singled twice and Nathaniel Brown scored two runs.

Skyler Petty took the loss, giving up four runs - two earned - on two hits and a walk in two innings.

Trey Dunn and John Pettus led the Patriots' win over Tippecanoe Valley. Pettus went 3-for-3 with two runs and an RBI, and Dunn had two hits, three runs and one RBI.

Brown added two hits and two RBIs.

Wellman gave up two runs on five hits to earn the win. He struck out five batters.

Dunn took the loss against Cowan as he allowed six runs - four earned - on eight hits and a walk in five innings.

Powell went 3-for-4 with a run and an RBI. Brown and Wellman each finished with one hit, one run and one RBI.

JV softball splits

Single runs in the sixth and seventh innings lifted the Jay County junior varsity softball team to a 7-6 victory in the first game of a double-header Saturday against Mississinewa. The Patriots dropped game two, 14-8.

Danielle Newsome led Jay County (3-9-1), which trailed 6-3 before scoring twice in the fifth inning of the opening game and once in each of the final two innings to pull out the win. She finished with two hits, including a double, and three RBIs.

Kelci Sell drove in two runs, and Ranae Ray scored twice.

Newsome also got the win, striking out four batters as she went the distance. She gave up six runs on seven hits and one walk.

Whitni Somers suffered the game-two defeat as she allowed 14 runs on nine hits and four walks.

Abby Denney totaled two hits and three RBIs, and Anneliese Jetmore added three hits. Paige Alsip drove in two runs, and Kyli Kelso and Leanna Vore each scored twice.

JV baseball wins one

Jay County's junior varsity baseball team dropped 21-9 to the Batesville Bulldogs in the opening round of Saturday's Centerville Tournament, but bounced back to beat the Franklin County Wildcats 5-2.

Ryan Miskinis powered the Patriots (5-11) to their victory with a home run. He drove in two runs and scored three times.

Justin Ellis had a double, and Anthony Robbins and Jordan McBride added one hit apiece.

Dusty Rodgers picked up the win as he struck out four batters. He allowed two runs on seven hits and four walks.

Eric Beougher took the loss against Batesville, giving up seven runs on eight hits and four walks in 1 2/3 innings.

McBride finished 2-for-3 with a double, a run and three RBIs in the loss. Rodgers and Shawn Homan drove in two runs apiece, Miskinis scored twice, and Ellis and David Rosenbeck each had two hits.[[In-content Ad]]