AUXVASSE - Wright City broke the game open with a nine-run outburst in the top of the seventh inning Wednesday night, pulling away for a 15-5 Eastern Missouri Conference romp over the North Callaway Thunderbirds.
Wright City (6-0, 2-0 EMO) opened the scoring with three runs in the third, but North Callaway (2-2, 1-1) answered by putting up five runs in its half of the inning to take the lead. The Wildcats scored a run in the fourth to close within 5-4, then tallied two runs in the fifth to go in front to stay.
Senior second baseman Trevor Crisp went 2-for-4 with a double and two runs batted in as the Thunderbirds finished with just six hits and committed four errors. Senior right fielder Zach McCowan was 2-for-3 and scored a run.
Senior starter Brandon Hagedorn suffered the loss for North Callaway, allowing six runs - five earned - on six hits in five innings. Hagedorn struck out six and walked one.
"I was very pleased with our hitting in the third inning," Thunderbirds head coach Kevin O'Neal said. "However, we have to put our hits together and we need to back our pitchers with better defense than what we're doing now."
North Callaway (2-2) won the junior varsity game 1-0 in one inning, before it was stopped because of rain.
The Thunderbirds travel to Bowling Green for an EMO matchup at 5 p.m. Tuesday.