McLaughlin’s complete game gem pushes Platte County to district title

After executing a plan to have all top pitching options available, Platte County only needed Brennan McLaughlin in Saturday’s Class 5 District 8 championship game. The Pirates’ junior right-handed ace took a no-hitter into the top of the seventh inning of a 5-1 win over St. Pius X at Winnetonka High School in Kansas City. He recorded the last of his 12 strikeouts to finish off a 98-pitch complete game gem.

Platte County (25-7) limited the pitch counts of McLaughlin, junior Zach Brown and sophomore Evan Magnuson in a semifinal victory over Kearney two days earlier but never went to the bullpen against St. Pius X (18-12), the upset-minded No. 4 seed, in the title game. The Warriors trailed 5-0 going to the top of the seventh and were down to their final two outs when junior Mason Wright launched a solo home run to center field for the first hit off of McLaughlin, who walked two.

McLaughlin then worked around a pair of runners to finish off the win and send second-seeded Platte County back to the playoffs for the first time since the Pirates won the Class 5 state title in 2022.

Platte County’s season continues in a reconfigured postseason format, facing a best-of-three series against District 7 champion Webb City (19-13) this weekend. The Cardinals host with one game scheduled for Friday night and a second to follow on Saturday morning. If necessary, the two teams would play a decisive third game immediately following the conclusion of the second.

The winner advances to the Class 5 MSHSAA Baseball Championships the following weekend at Ozark Mountain Sports Complex in Ozark.

Platte County enters the playoffs on a five-game winning streak having eliminated two-time defending District 8 champion Kearney and then ending St. Pius X’s unexpected run. The Warriors eliminated top-seeded Smithville (30-4) in the other semifinal.

“I just think we’re trying to get to that next step, trying to beat that other team — just trying to get to that next round,” Platte County junior catcher Ian Gold said.

Platte County senior shortstop Dayton Doll extended his school record for career hits with two, including a double, against St. Pius X. He scored twice and drove in two more, while junior centerfielder Rocco Marriott singled three times and stole four bases to help the Pirates’ offense score just enough runs despite missing out on multiple opportunities for bigger innings.

Scoreless going to the bottom of the third, Doll led of with a walk and stole second during McLaughlin’s following at-bat, which ended with a strikeout. Marriott then laid down a bunt, and St. Pius X sophomore third baseman Cooper Schergen overrunning the play with the ball going under his glove.

Running on the play, Doll easily scored from second to give Platte County an initial 1-0 lead. Marriott then stole two bases and came home on senior rightfielder Brock Fowler’s sacrifice fly.

McLaughlin worked around a one-out walk in the first and retired the next eight in a row before allowing a leadoff walk to start the fourth. He struck out two of the following three hitters to leave junior Jackson Reavey stranded at first base. The Warriors did not advance a runner to second until after Wright’s home run.

With still only one out in the seventh, St. Pius X senior Michael Mange followed with a single and went to second after McLaughlin junior Rocco Donnici with a pitch. A flyout advanced both runners into scoring position, but Warriors senior Zach Fish struck out swinging to end the game.

Gold and Platte County senior leftfielder Bronson Ryan hit back-to-back one out singles in the fourth, and Doll scored senior courtesy runner Patrick McCool with a two-out double that one-hopped the wall in left field to increase the Pirates’ lead to 3-0.

Platte County added two insurance runs in the bottom of the sixth after Ryan doubled with one out. He moved to third on a single from senior second baseman Liam Blacklock, who continues to start and hit leadoff following an apparent season-ending knee injury for senior all-state infielder Taylor Stamberksy. With two on, Doll put the Pirates up 4-0 on a bloop single to score Ryan, but the Warriors recorded the second out on the play with Blacklock cut down trying to go first to third.

However, Doll stole second and third and came home on a wild pitch to provide McLaughlin with a five-run cushion.

In 2022, Platte County won the program’s second state title and first since taking home the Class 3A championship in 2002. Only Doll, a four-year starter at second base and shortstop, remains from that squad. The Pirates lost to Smithville in the district semifinals two years ago and against Kearney in last year’s championship game.

Platte County 8, Kearney 2

The Pirates rallied back from a brief deficit in Thursday’s semifinal and then pulled away in a disastrous bottom of the sixth for the No. 3 seed at Creekside Baseball Complex.

Marriott, Fowler and junior first baseman Brooks Hall finished with a pair of singles each for Platte County, while Gold walked twice and drove in a pair of runs. He continued a lengthy hot stretch at the plate, forcing in the tying run on a bases-loaded walk two outs in the bottom of the fourth inning. Ryan followed with another walk to put the Pirates up 3-2.

Gold walked to lead off the seventh, the first of five in the inning for Platte County plus a hit batter. The Pirates scored four to go up 8-2 with the lone hit in the frame a single for Marriott to score Ryan. Blacklock also came home on a throwing error from the left fielder.

“It’s just making sure that I’m not really thinking about anything when I’m going up there. I’m just going up there trying to hit the ball,” Gold said of his approach at the plate leading to his recent run of success. “Patience is a big thing. It’s just about me relaxing when I go up to the plate, just trying to hit the ball — swing at everything I know I can hit and leaving everything off that I can’t.”

McLaughlin started and struck out five but exited with after allowing a second single to Kearney senior centerfielder Chase Porter.

Platte County went to Brown, who worked around the runner but found himself in trouble an inning later. He allowed a single and a walk to start the fourth before a throwing error from Hall trying to record an out at third on a bunt allowed the Bulldogs to score their first run.

Kearney senior Ayden Newton singled past McLaughlin drawn in at third two batters later to put the Bulldogs up 2-1. McLaughlin had just cut down a runner at the plate for the first out, and after a strikeout and intentional walk to Porter, Brown escaped a bases-loaded jam with a grounder to Doll, who awkwardly managed to step on second while going right to left and force out Porter just before the two collided on his slide.

McLaughlin started Platte County’s fourth with a single but ended up doubled off when Porter came on to make a running catch on Marriott’s soft liner to center. The Pirates’ go-ahead rally started with a walk on four pitches for Fowler, and Kearney junior starter Cale Davis then hit junior designated hitter Andrew Edsall with a pitch.

Hall loaded the bases with a solid single to left ahead of the walks for Gold and Ryan.

Edsall added a sacrifice fly with the bases loaded to score McLaughlin in the fifth. Kearney replaced Davis in the sixth with junior Cameron Taylor walking the only three batters he faced before senior Eli Helberg, the injured ace of the staff who led the Bulldogs to the playoffs the last two season, came in with the bases loaded. He hit Doll with a pitch to give the Pirates a 5-2 lead and later forced in the final run when he walked Edsall with the bases loaded.

Platte County ended up using four pitchers with Magnuson replacing Brown on a full count with two outs in the fifth and a 3-2 count on Kearney senior Trent Dostal. Magnuson walked him and ended up with three total, limited to just one inning before being pulled at 32 pitches with two outs in the sixth. The Pirates went to Hall, who recorded a strikeout, strand the bases loaded and preserve the 4-2 lead.

All three Platte County pitching changes were made to keep McLaughlin, Brown and Magnuson at 45 pitches and preserve their availability for the championship game. Hall ended up striking out three in 1 1/3 innings a day after he started the opening round game against Van Horn.

“As the catcher, for each of those guys that come in, it’s just making sure they’re relaxed,” Gold said. “It’s just about them throwing their pitches, having that confidence that they need.”

Platte County 10, Van Horn 0, 5 innings

Hall and senior Wes Chiddix combined to strike out six in a no-hitter Wednesday at Creekside Baseball Park in Parkville.

Platte County scored in four of five innings and ended up with a walkoff, run-rule-shortened victory in the first round matchup with the No. 7 seed. Ryan tripled and drove in three, while Marriott and Hall scored two runs apiece. The Pirates also walked seven times and took advantage of two errors.

Hall retired all seven batters he faced and exited with one out in the third.

Chiddix immediately issued a walk to give Van Horn (9-16) an initial runner. Gold threw him out trying to steal, and Chiddix then recorded the first of his four strikeouts. The Falcons also put a runner on with a two-out walk in the fourth but never advanced a runner to second after Chiddix recorded the third out on a pickoff.

Platte County loaded the bases with no outs in the bottom of the second but only scored one run with Marriott coming home on a wild pitch. He reached on a leadoff single and moved to third after walks to Hall and Gold. The Pirates broke the game open with a five-run third, which started with a triple for McLaughlin.

Edsell singled, and Fowler tripled him home, driving a 2-1 pitch to center field.

Marriott added an RBI double and later scored on an error before Platte County went up 6-0 on Ryan’s sacrifice bunt. Doll scored the Pirates’ lone run in the fourth on a sacrifice fly after drawing a leadoff walk. The three game-ending runs all came out before Van Horn recorded an out in the seventh. Hall and Gold started with singles and both scored on Ryan’s triple. After two intentional walks, McLaughlin hit an RBI single.