Platte County takes advantage of opportunities to down Kearney

Platte County didn’t see the opposition’s top pitcher but did take full advantage of six walks, four errors and three hit batters to earn an important victory Friday night. The Pirates pulled away late to beat Kearney 6-1 at Platte County High School in a rematch of last season’s Class 5 District 8 championship game.

Kearney and Platte County will be two of the favorites in this year’s postseason bracket as well, although the two teams have a combined three losses to Smithville (15-3) this spring.

Platte County sophomore Evan Magnuson consistently worked around runners and allowed only one run with two strikeouts while allowing four hits and walking two in 4 1/3 innings. Zach Brown, a junior, came on and allowed just one hit in 2 2/3 innings of nearly spotless relief to help the Pirates earn their first win over Kearney since winning the Class 5 state title in 2022

During a recent stretch, Platte County (14-4) lost three of four games but now takes a five-game winning streak into a return to Suburban Conference White Division play this week.

“It humbled us a little bit. We we were able to put our nose down and get back to work and got us in a spot to move forward,” said Platte County senior second baseman Taylor Stambersky, scratched from the lineup against Kearney with an undisclosed injury.

Kearney (10-9) didn’t use senior all-state pitcher Eli Helberg in the only scheduled matchup this season between the two teamed and junior Cale Davis took the loss despite only allowing two earned runs in 4 2/3 innings.

Platte County managed only five hits total, and only junior centerfielder Rocco Marriott’s triple to lead off the bottom of the sixth went for extra bases. After a walk for junior first baseman Brooks Hall, the Bulldogs erased Marriott at the plate on junior Andrew Edsall’s bunt attempt. However, Hall advanced to third on the play and scored on senior leftfielder Bronson Ryan’s sacrifice fly to increase the Pirates’ lead to 6-1.

Brown recorded two of his three strikeouts in the top of the seventh to wrap up the win.

Platte County never trailed and took a 2-0 lead in the second despite unexpectedly losing Stambersky from the leadoff spot in the lineup. The Pirates moved senior Dayton Doll over to second base with junior Brennan McLaughlin replacing him at shortstop — a position he played for portions of his past two seasons — while senior Brady Davis started at third base and hit ninth in the order.

In the second, Platte County loaded the bases with Edsall being hit by a pitch, Ryan reaching on an error and Brady Davis reaching on an infield single that held the two runners in scoring position. Doll, moved up from No. 2 to leadoff in the lineup, followed with an RBI walk, and senior rightfielder Brock Fowler scored another with a groundout.

Cale Davis then hit McLaughlin with a pitch to load the bases again but stranded all three runners to keep Kearney within two. The Bulldogs came right back to score one in the top of the third with a single and stolen base from senior leadoff hitter Chase Porter, who then scored on senior Tyler Maynard’s single to left field.

Magnuson then induced a double play, and after one of Platte County’s two errors put another runner on, he recorded a strikeout to keep the lead intact. The Pirates stranded three total runners over the next two innings but broke the game open with three more runs in the fifth.

Hall led off with a single, and Kearney committed two errors in addition to a hit batter and a single for Stambersky to load the bases while pinch-hitting for Brady Davis. Doll then drove in a run with a sacrifice fly, and the second error helped Platte County extend the lead to 5-1.

Platte County 5, Truman 3

The Pirates improved to 5-0 in conference play with McLaughlin starting on the mound and reentering in the bottom of the seventh to close out Wednesday’s win in Independence.

McLaughlin also added a three-run home run to give Platte County an early lead and thought his day on the mound ended after five shutout innings. However, Edsall hit the only batter he faced in the bottom of the seventh, and McLaughlin came back in. He walked one and then recorded the last two of his 11 strikeouts and then stranded the potential tying run at first with a groundout.

Platte County’s two insurance runs in the top of the sixth ended up the difference. After junior catcher Ian Gold doubled with one out, the Pirates went up 4-0 on Stambersky’s single to center. He then stole two bases and came home on a wild pitch.

Truman then closed the gap to 5-3 against a pair of relievers.

Platte County senior Wes Chiddix ended up tagged for all three runs but only one earned after an error helped the Patriots extend the bottom of the sixth. Brown came on with a runner at first and needed just three pitches to induce an inning-ending flyout.

McLaughlin went 3-for-3 and finished a triple shy of the cycle. He doubled in the top of the first with two outs but ended up stranded then worked out of a bases-loaded jam in the bottom of the inning to keep the game scoreless.

In the third, Stambersky and Doll both singled with one out before McLaughlin homered to center field for the first three Platte County runs. The Pirates finished with nine hits and five walks but struggled to hit with runners on base in what ended up a tight victory.

Platte County 13, Fort Osage 3, 5 innings

The Pirates scored in all four turns at bat and importantly put up three runs in the bottom of the fourth to put the run rule back in play Monday night at Platte County High School.

Doll and Marriott both went 3-for-3 and drove in three runs apiece, while McLaughlin added a double and a triple for Platte County in the conference matchup. Doll doubled twice and scored three runs before exiting early with the Pirates up big.

Truman scored three in the fourth to close back within 10-3. In the bottom of the inning, Hall led off with a double before a walk to Ryan. The Pirates loaded the bases after Gold was hit by a pitch.

After a strikeout, Stambersky singled in two runs, and senior courtesy runner Trent Belcher came home on a balk to restore the 10-run lead.

“That’s how baseball works,” said Stambersky, who finished 2-for-4 with three RBIs and two runs scored. “They’re going to clap back at some point. Being able to respond to that is how you play the game.”

Platte County senior left-hander Poul Gratereaux-Baez, a first-year transfer, impressed in 3 1/3 innings, allowing no hits and only two walks while striking out five in an impressive start. Brown gave up three runs in 1 2/3 innings, working around a one-out single in the fifth to finish the game early.

In the top of the first, Platte County staked Gratereaux-Baez to a 2-0 lead and missed a chance at a bigger inning. Doll doubled with one out and scored on McLaughlin’s triple. An infield single for Marriott and a walk to Fowler loaded the bases, and Hall plated McLaughlin with a sacrifice fly. The Pirates added four in the second with Doll hitting a two-run double and McLaughlin following with an RBI double and then scoring on Marriott’s single.

Platte County’s four-run third started with an error and included singles for Gold, Stambersky, Doll and Marriott, who drove in two with his.

Gratereaux-Baez worked around two hit batters in the top of the third and then struck out the first batter of the fourth. He exited at 59 pitches and turned in the type of performance that could earn him more innings in the rotation during the stretch run and postseason.

“We know he’s got our back, and we’ve got his,” Stambersky said. “He’s a great pitcher; he’s a great player and a great teammate.”