By William / www.mcpherson-county-ks.com

MARION – The Canton/Galva baseball came close twice on Tuesday, only to fall short in both games of a doubleheader at home against Marion, losing 8-5 and 10-8.

Now 0-6 for the season, the Eagles will be back on the competitive diamond Friday when they play at Bennington.

In game one, the Eagles took an early 2-0 lead in the first inning before Marion scored in the second. After Canton/Galva added a pair of runs to the books in the third Marion responded with a run in the third and four in the fourth before adding one run in each of the fifth and sixth innings to finish out the 8-5 win over the Eagles.

Garrett Maltbie started on the mound for the Eagles and went 2.1 innings, scattering just two hits and striking out five while giving up zero earned runs. John Burrill came on and threw 1.2 innings before Ryder Norstrom went the final three innings as the three pitchers combined to give up just seven hits, two walks, and only two earned runs as the Eagle defense struggled, committing six errors.

At the plate, Ross Burrill led the Eagles with three of the teams six hits while Andrew Huxman pounded out a double and Maltbie stole four of the teams seven stolen bases. Burrill also recorded three runs batted in.

Game two started out much the same as the first as the Eagles went up 3-0 in the first inning before Marion tied the game in the second. In the third, Canton/Galva pushed across five runs to take a seemingly comfortable 8-3 advantage only to have Marion score once in each of the fourth and fifth innings before getting three in the sixth to tie the game and the score twice in the seventh to gain the heartbreaking 10-8 victory over the Eagles.

John Burrill began the game on the mound for the Eagles before Andrew Huxman and Ross Burrill finished it out. The three combined to give up 10 hits and seven earned runs while walking five and striking out six. Once again, the Eagles defense struggled, committing another five errors in the second game.

Of the 10 Eagle hits, Garrett Maltbie had three and Huxman had two with one of Maltbie’s being a triple.

CANTON/GALVA EAGLES at Marion

GAME 1:       1-2-3-4-5-6-7=R-H-E

EAGLES          2-0-2-0-1-0-0=5-6-6

Marion          0-1-1-4-1-1-0=8-na-na

CANTON/GALVA EAGLES PITCHING (IP-H-R-ER-BB-SO): Garrett Maltbie 2.1-2-2-0-0-5; John Burrill 1.2-1-4-0-1-0; Ryder Norstrom 3.0-4-2-2-1-0. Team Totals: 7-7-8-2-2-5.

CANTON/GALVA EAGLES HITTING (AB-R-H-RBI-BB): Braison Alcala 1-0-0-0-0; Garrett Maltbie 2-2-1-0-2; John Burrill 2-0-0-0-0; Ryder Norstrom 3-1-0-0-1; Andrew Huxman 3-2-1-1-1; Dylan Cherry 2-0-0-0-0; Ben Unruh 3-0-1-0-0; Xavier Westbrook 3-0-0-0-0; Ross Burrill 3-0-3-3-0; Gavin Robertson 1-0-0-0-0; Noah Collins 3-0-0-0-0. Team Totals: 26-5-6-4-4. 2B (1): Huxman – 1; SB (7): Maltbie – 4; Norstrom, Huxman, B. Unruh – 1. LOB: 4.

GAME 2:       1-2-3-4-5-6-7=R-H-E

EAGLES          3-0-5-0-0-0-0=8-10-5

Marion          0-3-0-1-1-3-2=10-na-na   

CANTON/GALVA PITCHING (IP-H-R-ER-BB-SO): John Burrill 2.0-3-3-2-0-1; Andrew Huxman 1.2-2-3-3-4-1; Ross Burrill 3.1-5-4-2-1-4. Team Totals: 7-10-10-7-5-6.

CANTON/GALVA HITTING (AB-R-H-RBI-BB): Braison Alcala 1-0-0-0-0; Garrett Maltbie 4-1-3-1-0; John Burrill 1-1-0-0-0; Ryder Norstrom 3-1-1-2-1; Andrew Huxman 4-2-2-1-0; Dylan Cherry 4-0-1-1-0; Ben Unruh 3-0-1-1-0; Xavier Westbrook 4-1-1-1-0; Ross Burrill 4-0-1-1-0; Gavin Roberston 1-1-0-0-2; Noah Collins 2-1-0-0-1. Team Totals: 31-8-10-8-4. 3B (1): Maltbie – 1; SB (4): Huxman – 2; Norstrom, Robertson – 1. LOB: 5.

(William is a free-lance writer covering McPherson County Activities – he can be reached at crossdovewriter@gmail.com)