Toppers win over Illini Bluffs

[April 25, 2014]  MOUNT PULASKI — The Mount Pulaski pitching-catching duo of Michael Lowery and Beau Collier is a winning combination.

On Thursday afternoon the Toppers won a conference game 4-0 over Illini Bluffs (9-3). Lowery (5-0) dominated Illini Bluffs from the mound with a season-high 13 strikeouts while Beau Collier had an RBI single in the Toppers' victory.

The Toppers scored three runs in the third inning, which featured a triple by Blake Collier, his fourth on the season. Collier would score quickly on a wild pitch to get the Toppers on the board. Michael Lowery helped his own cause with a double, his 10th on the season. Next, cleanup hitter Beau Collier reached on an error and Matthew Amidon highlighted the inning with a two-run single, scoring Lowery and Collier.

The Toppers would put another run on the board in the fifth inning on an RBI single by Beau Collier. This run allowed a little more breathing room for the Toppers and their head coach, Joel Washko.

The Toppers' overall record improves to 7-6 and 4-0 in the Tomahawk Conference.

They will take on Calvary on Saturday morning at 10 in Springfield.

Looking ahead to next week, the Toppers travel to Springfield Lutheran on Monday, and on Tuesday they face conference foes and county rivals Hartsburg-Emden.

[By TEENA LOWERY]