Cougars fall in duel at district tournament at district tournament

The Cougars met the hosting Buffalo Island Central Mustangs in the first round of the 2A-3 District Tournament at Monette Friday in a classic baseball struggle. The result of the game was a disappointing one for Rector fans, as the Cougars fell 2-1 in the hard-fought contest.

"It was a duel," Rector coach Nate Henderson said. "Both teams came out and played as hard as they could."

The game was a battle of defense and pitching, as neither team was able to muster much at the plate.

BIC scored the first run of the day on a squeeze bunt in the third inning. Rector tied things up in the sixth inning when a two-out Clinton Haley single to rightfield scored Dalton Shaw from second.

The teams remained deadlocked through the regulation seven innings, requiring a bonus frame to determine a winner. Unfortunately for the blue and white faithful, BIC was able to plate a run in the extra inning, coming away the victor.

Senior Logan Buck gave a strong performance in the loss, going all eight innings while allowing just two runs on six hits.

"I thought Logan did an outstanding job for us on the mound," Henderson said. "We couldn't have asked for anything more."

Defensive play was also strong for Rector. The team committed no errors in the game.

"I thought we played tremendous defense," Henderson said. "We made plays and didn't hurt ourselves in the field. It was a tremendous effort."

The weak area for the squad was offense. Neither team was able to make a significant breakthrough at the plate.

"The game came down to hitting, or a lack thereof," Henderson said. "We just couldn't get anything going at the plate. That sums up the game for us right there. We played well defensively and pitched well, but we couldn't buy a hit. It was just one of those games."

Rector finished with five hits on the day. Haley led the way, going 2-3 with an RBI. James Bradshaw was also 2-3, while Dalton Shaw was 1-3 at the plate.

Although the season ended with a sour note, four Cougars received recognition for their strong play during the season. Buck, Shaw, Bradshaw and Justin Duke, all seniors, were named to the All-Conference team.

"Those four guys played well for me all season," Henderson said. "They're all four seniors who brought leadership and ability to the field every time out."