BENTON -- A nightmare first-game finish didn't carry over.
After letting a late four-run lead slip away in the opener of a Junior American Legion split doubleheader, Hot Springs Village-Graves Sports made a fast start in the nightcap and cruised behind Montana Carden's pitching to a 12-3 win over Benton Sports Shop Thursday night at Ben Holland Park.
HSV-Graves scored three runs in each of the first two innings, sparked by leadoff hits from Caleb Moody and Chase Pederson, and pulled away with two in the fourth and four in the fifth. The game was stopped under the time limit after Carden allowed a run in the bottom of the fifth while striking out the side.
"It was a different game," Carden said after allowing two earned runs and four hits. "You can't remember the first game, you just have to play the second on."
Benton Gingles, made up of players from Benton High, scored four runs in the seventh to force an eighth inning. They won 9-8 on Ross Carver's bases-loaded single.
HSV-Graves coach Jeff Carden said the loss wasn't discussed between games.
"They were just ready to play (again) after losing that one. They came out hungry in that second game," the elder Carden said.
Moody led off with a single, moved all the way to third went Dylan Anderson reached on an error and scored when pitcher Jared Patrick balked after Anderson broke for second. Anderson came home on the first of Sports Shop's six wild pitches, and Dayton Pate (walk) scored when Carden singled and the ball got past center fielder Blake Pennington.
Pederson doubled down the left-field line to start the second. Patrick retired the next two batters, but Moody drove in Pederson with a single to left-center. Moody stole second and raced around third to score on Dakota Fortenberry's infield single, and Anderson (walk) made it 6-0 on a double steal.
Montana Carden allowed two third-inning runs on Caleb Dorsey's two-out single and an error, then began a string of four strikeouts. He finished with nine.
"My curveball was working today and I kept them off-balance," the Jessieville incoming junior said.
Carden, who had ACL surgery in November after a football injury, threw 85 pitches -- 23 in the fifth. He walked one batter and hit two.
"We had (Gingles) on the ropes in that first game and just couldn't finish them out," Jeff Carden said. "We used five pitchers in that game, so Montana was pretty much all we had in the second game."
HSV-Graves scored without a hit in the fourth. Pennington hit Anderson and walked Fortenberry, both advancing on an errant pick-off throw and Anderson scoring on Pate's groundout. Fortenberry scored on another of Sports Shop's six errors.
Pederson and Fortenberry had RBI singles in the fourth, the other two runs scoring on wild pitches by Jared Stroud.
"It's a pretty good comeback after you get beat and come back and score 12 runs in the second game," Montana Carden said. "Everybody was in the right mood in the second game."
Pederson went 2 for 2 with a walk, and Moody and Fortenberry both went 2 for 3. Moody and Anderson each scored three runs and had two of their team's six stolen bases.
HSV-Graves (7-6) played a doubleheader Friday night at Jacksonville, the finishes the regular season against Sheridan Tuesday at the Paul Bewie Boys & Girls Club. The Zone 4 tournament starts Thursday at Sheridan.
HSV-Graves Sports 330 24 - 12 7 4
Benton Sports Shop 002 01 - 3 4 6
Game stopped after 5 innings, time limit.
W-Carden. L-Patrick. 2B-HSV, Pederson. SB-HSV, Moody 2, Fortenberry 2, Anderson, Pederson. BSS, Pennington.
Sports on 07/04/2015