Hilltoppers drop two in Pleasant
Plains Baseball Showcase
[April 13, 2026]
The day began at noon on April 10, 2026 for the Mount Pulaski
Hilltoppers when they boarded the bus and traveled to Pleasant
Plains to take on the Father McGivney Griffins and the Pleasant
Plains Cardinals in a baseball showcase hosted by Pleasant Plains.
Now for the unbelievable part of the story, the day ended after
midnight for the Hilltoppers.
Game One
The Hilltoppers lost 5-3 to Father McGivney in the mid-afternoon
game of the showcase.
Carter Clark started the game for Mount Pulaski against Father
McGivney. He worked three and one-third innings, giving up six hits
and four runs. Three of the runs were earned. He gave up three walks
and struck out two batters.
Jaeden Jackson pitched two and two-thirds innings, giving up one hit
and one run. He walked three and struck out two batters.
Chase Roberts led Mount Pulaski at the plate with a 2-for-3
performance. Roberts scored a run and drove in a run.
Mount Pulaski tied the game 1-1 in the top of the third inning on an
RBI single by Roberts.
The Griffins went ahead in the bottom of the third inning and
continued to build on the lead over the next couple innings.
Heading into the top of the seventh inning Mount Pulaski was
trailing 5-1.
With Tucker Fitzpatrick taking a lead-off walk and Roberts and
Preston Cowan swatting singles, the Hilltoppers plated a run.
Roberts scored on a balk and that would be the end of the
Hilltoppers scoring.
Aiden Willis and William Heinz combined to strikeout eleven
Hilltoppers with Willis earning the win and Heinz the save for the
Griffins.
Game Two
The day kept running behind and what was supposed to be an 8:00 p.m.
start for the Hilltoppers ended up with the first pitch being tossed
at 9:54 p.m. Thankfully, it was the last game of the day which
featured Mount Pulaski taking on the hosts, Pleasant Plains.
This game was a nail-biting pitcher’s duel between starters Luke
Martin and Max Johnson.
Martin worked four innings of scoreless ball for Mount Pulaski,
allowing just three hits and striking out five batters. He walked
one.
Johnson tossed five and two-thirds innings for Pleasant Plains,
giving up just one hit and allowing two runs. He walked five and
struck out nine batters.
Martin was relieved in the fifth inning by Jaeden Jackson.
Jackson threw two and one-third innings, giving up one hit and three
runs. He walked three and struck out four batters. Jackson suffered
the loss.
Chase Roberts faced two batters in the seventh inning, giving up one
hit.
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Pleasant Plains also used Kreston Shultz for one
and one-third innings and he gave up one hit, one walk and struck
out one batter. Shultz earned the win.
The game was scoreless through five innings and if you were lucky
enough to stay awake and withstand the dropping temperatures, you
witnessed “The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat” as coined
by Jim McKay on ABC’s Wide World of Sports.
The top of the sixth inning started with two quick
outs by the Hilltoppers. The Hilltoppers then drew three walks to
load the bases. Luke Martin was walked intentionally and Preston
Cowan and Tyler Cross joined him on base.
Jaeden Jackson became the hero of the game real quick when he
smacked a 1-1 pitch to the absolute deepest part of centerfield and
if it was a little bit higher and a tad bit farther it would’ve been
a grand slam. Instead the ball landed at the base of the fence and
was grabbed quickly by the centerfielder. Jackson and the
Hilltoppers were pumped at the two runs that scored and it was also
the first hit of the game for Mount Pulaski.
Carter Clark followed Jackson with a walk but one out later the
Hilltoppers would leave the bases loaded with a 2-0 lead.
Jackson retired the side in the bottom of the sixth inning on
thirteen pitches and it looked like Mount Pulaski was the stronger
team at this point.
Roberts hit a two-out double in the top of the seventh inning for
Mount Pulaski but no one could hit him in so the Hilltoppers headed
to the bottom of the seventh inning with Jackson taking the mound.
Jackson issued a walk and gave up a single before getting a
strikeout for the first out in the seventh inning. The next two guys
reached base on hit by pitches, and that drove in the first run for
the Cardinals.
With a 2-1 lead and the time now 11:44 p.m. Chase Roberts took the
mound for Mount Pulaski and his first pitch sailed to the backstop,
like Wild Thing in “Major League.” Roberts worked the next guy to a
2-2 count before he lifted a sacrifice fly to left that scored the
tying run.
Roberts then worked Ian Behl into an 0-2 count quickly but on the
third pitch he hit a solid single to center that scored the winning
run for the Cardinals.
When the winning run scored the time was 11:48 p.m.
It was a beautiful walk-off win for the Cardinals but a stinging
agony of defeat for Mount Pulaski.
Luckily, the Hilltoppers were able to eat in between games because
the bus did not get back to Mount Pulaski until close to 1:00 a.m.
on April 11, 2026.
Mount Pulaski fell to 5-4 on the season.
The Hilltoppers look to start another winning streak when they host
Cerro Gordo/Bement on Tuesday at 4:30 p.m.
The Hilltoppers host the next six games at home.
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