Geneva sweeps Larkin

Geneva was glad to get some runs early for a change.

After breaking open their last couple of games late, the Vikings scored 4 times in the second inning on the way to downing Larkin, 6-1, to sweep the Upstate Eight Conference River Division baseball series.

"All the runs were scored late in the first two games, so it was nice," said Vikings' coach Matt Hahn. "We made it a little interesting at the end, though."

Geneva left-hander Mitchell Merges allowed just 2 hits through 4 innings before getting into trouble in the fifth. Jack McCloughan and Ben Slattery finished the 6-hitter.

Matt Simpson smacked 3 hits for Geneva (11-7, 8-5). Jason Croci, Nate Montgomery, and Garrett Davis had 2 hits apiece for the Vikings.

Larkin starter Nick Fillmore didn't pitch badly except for that second inning.

"I thought he threw pretty well," said Larkin coach Matt Esterino. "That inning where they got most of their runs, we had two 0-2 pitches we left over the heart of the plate, and that's where the damage was done. He learned the hard way there, and if he can locate those pitches, it's a 1-1, 2-1 game."

Daniel Lenz (3) and Jonathan Lenz (2) combined for 5 of the Royals' 6 hits. Dan Lenz's smash off the third baseman's glove drove in the Royals' only run in the fifth.

"We saw some good arms this week," said Esterino. "We swung a little bit better today but, yeah, the wind was blowing in, it's a little bit cold. We just didn't hit the ball enough, but we're slowly getting better."

Davis and Simpson singled to start the big second inning. Merges sacrificed them over, and A. J. Hostman reached on an error to load the bases. Consecutive singles by Justin Hasegawa, Croci and Jack Wassel drove in all 4 runs.

Davis and Montgomery singled in runs in the fifth and sixth, respectively.

Seventeen of the game's 18 hits were singles, with only Croci's sixth-inning triple into the right-center field gap going for extra bases.