Platte County comes up frustratingly short of doubleheader sweep in key conference games

Platte County came away with a deserved doubleheader split but still felt like an opportunity slipped away Wednesday night.

With a tightening race in the Suburban Conference White Division race, Platte County senior pitcher Zach Brown turned in an impressive performance, taking advantage of a rare chance to start in a 4-1 victory in the opener at Platte County High School. With the Pirates in position to complete the sweep, an exchange of late-inning comebacks ended with Grain Valley taking a 7-5 win while playing as home team in the nightcap.

Platte County finished the week at 15-11 overall and 7-2 in conference play, a game back of Truman in the loss column along with Grain Valley.

“It’s definitely difficult, but we’ve gotta stay positive; we gotta just work to the next one,” said Brown, who went 6 1/3 innings and struck out five in Platte County’s win over Grain Valley on Wednesday. “It’s tough winning these doubleheaders, but we just gotta stay energized. Like coach was saying earlier, it’s hard to win the first one and lose the second one because we’re kinda down but we just gotta keep our mind up.”

Brown’s gem in his second start of the season created a strong start for Platte County.

Grain Valley (14-12, 8-2) managed only four hits total, but two came in the top of the seventh with a double from senior Bryce Meyer chasing Brown with one out and two runners on base. The Eagles manufactured a run charged to him off of junior Brock Dye, who came on in relief to record the final two outs.

Dye didn’t allow a runner, and Grain Valley never brought the potential tying run to the plate.

“It was a great opportunity, and I just went with it,” Brown said. “It was a little tough (coming out of the game). I wanted the (complete game), but Brock did a great job. He did a great job going in and throwing strikes and getting me out of that jam and so I’m very proud of how Brock handled that.”

Platte County never trailed after senior first baseman Andrew Edsall’s RBI single in the bottom of the second, but the Pirates stranded two in the inning and struggled to create separation.

A solo home run from senior shortstop Brennan McLaughlin, the sixth of the season for the two-time all-state performer and 2025 Missouri Baseball Coaches Association (MBCA) Class 5 player of the year, doubled the lead in the third. Singles from senior designated hitter Ian Gold and sophomore third baseman Nolan Sipes pushed the Pirates’ advantage to 3-0 in the same inning.

Sipes finished 2-for-2 with his single plating junior pinch-runner Gaven Vest in the third before adding an RBI double off the wall in the fifth for Platte County’s final run. McLaughlin scored with two outs after he led off with a single, stole second and advanced to third on Vest’s groundout.

McLaughlin went 3-for-3 and now has 12 hits — three home runs — in Platte County’s last seven games.

“It’s nice seeing we can get the big hit, especially late in the game, and putting that team away in the first game is nice — very, very nice,” Brown said.

Brown retired nine straight Grain Valley batters from the point of stranding two in the top of the fourth through the first out of the seventh. He walked just one on 88 pitches.

With the performance, Brown lowered his ERA to 0.93 in a team-high 30 innings.

Platte County used three pitchers in the second game with junior starter Evan Magnuson and senior Trent Belcher combining to walk eight. The Pirates struggled to provide offensive support early with just one hit in the first five innings.

However, Platte County led 1-0 after the top of the first following a leadoff double from sophomore second baseman Beckett Hall that dropped in front of a diving left fielder. He came home on McLaughlin’s sacrifice fly that followed junior left fielder Matt Cisco’s sacrifice bunt.

Magnuson worked around his five walks. He ended up charged with just one run, exiting after a Grain Valley leadoff single in the bottom of the third in another performance that leaves him searching for the all-state form from his sophomore year while playing a pivotal role in Platte County’s second state title in a span of four seasons. The Pirates went back to Dye, who immediately gave up a double in a two-run inning.

Dye went two innings and allowed three runs, and he exited with Platte County down 4-2. The Pirates briefly drew level at 2-2 when Cisco walked to start the top of the fourth and scored on Gold’s sacrifice fly.

With the lack of offense, Platte County looked poise to go down quietly until Hall reached on an error in the sixth.

Cisco and McLaughlin followed with singles, the second an RBI hit closing the gap to 4-3. The Pirates eventually manufactured their way back into the lead back on a bunt from Gold, who ended up ruled out at first although coaches questioned whether Grain Valley’s first baseman came off the bag early before trying to throw back home and cut down Cisco at the plate.

After a walk and a strikeout, Platte County sophomore Boston Wasserman, splitting time at catcher with junior Tate Archer, put a ground ball in play and reached on an error that allowed McLaughlin to score the go-ahead run.

“It was very positive,” Brown said. “I liked the approaches (at the plate).”

Platte County couldn’t hold.

Grain Valley came up with a lengthy two-out rally in the bottom of the sixth. Belcher walked two and senior Hunter Nally brought the Eagles level at 5-5 with a single center field. Meyer then belted a two-run double off the wall in right field for the game’s final two runs.

Cisco singled with two outs in the seventh, but Grain Valley junior Jayden Lewis struck out McLaughlin, who represented the potential tying run.

Platte County has now gone 6-7 since a season-best seven-game winning streak but still ranked No. 3 in the most recent set of MBCA Class 5 state rankings. The next are due out Monday, May 4.

Grain Valley and Platte County both have upcoming games against Truman (11-13, 6-2) with a chance to take more control of the White Division title race.

“We’ve been seeing improvements,” Brown said. “I know a week ago a lot of the seniors had talks with the guys. It’s a very tough season. Playing on the team last year, knowing how hard it is to get through every game and the playoff run, it’s very difficult, but I think we got the right group of guys and we’re going in the right direction.”

Platte County entered the doubleheader off of a 11-0 five-inning victory over Raytown in a conference game on Monday that snapped a two-game losing skid from the prior week in road games at Truman and Kearney. The Pirates scored all 11 in the first three innings with McLaughlin going 2-for-4 with a home run, double and three RBIs. Hall doubled and scored three times and drove in two more, while Cisco added a double, two runs and three RBIs.

Raytown managed just one hit against seniors Lucas Dillingham and Owen Bane, who combined to strikeout six and didn’t walk a batter.

Platte County quickly bounced back from the loss to Grain Valley with a 9-0 shutout of Belton on the road Friday night in White Division play. Bane and Dillingham switched the order of appearance but combined for seven more strong innings, striking out eight and allowing just two hits and two walks.

McLaughlin homered for the third time in four games, this one a solo shot in the top of the sixth that increased the lead to 9-0. Edsall went 2-for-3 with a double and a triple and scored twice, while Hall led off the game with a triple and accounted for the first run on Gold’s groundout.

Platte County scored in each of the first six innings, including a three-run second that started with Edsall’s one out triple and finished with Cisco’s RBI single.