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LaRoche homers, drives in 3 as Stars advance
WICHITA -- Fort Scott's Adam LaRoche was 2 for 3, driving in 3 runs and hitting his second home run of the tournament as the Kansas Stars eliminated the defending champion Seattle Studs, 10-2, in the quarterfinals of the National Baseball Congress World Series at Lawrence Dumont Stadium here Thursday night.
The game ended in the eighth due to the tournament's 8-run rule.
Former Kansas City Royals pitcher Jeremy Guthrie, who at 37 is one of the young pups on the team, pitched 6 strong innings. Guthrie allowed 2 runs on 4 hits and 3 walks while striking out 5 against the Studs, who are one of the usual powerhouse teams at the NBCWS.
Santa Barbara, the 2011, 2012 and 2014 champs, and Hays were also winners in Thursday afternoon games. Santa Barbara shut out the Northwest Washington Honkers, 11-0, while the Larks dispatched the Fairbanks Goldpanners, 13-7. The NJCAA National Team, which beat the Stars in the final round of pool play Wednesday night (see below) faced the San Diego Force in Thursday's late game.
Beginning Thursday, the tournament became single elimination. There is no bracket available online but one source said it was likely that the Stars will play Hays at 7 p.m. tonight. The championship game will be televised live by ESPNU at 7 p.m. Saturday night.
LaRoche brought in the first run of the game when his sacrifice fly scored Pete Orr in the bottom of the first inning. The Studs tied it at 1-1 in the top of the third when Alex Hull's single to right scored Jacob Prater.
Wilson led off the bottom of the third with a single. He scored on LaRoche's one-out homer, his second of the tournament, to make it 3-1.
Four runs went up for the Stars in the fourth. Ryan Langerhans led off with a single and Barry Wesson doubles. Orr's single to center brought home both runners. Brandon Inge came up after a pitching change to hit a one-out homer to make it 7-1.
Former St. Louis Cardinal J.D. Drew led off the fifth with a single and eventually scored on an error. Seattle got one run in the top of the sixth but the Stars made it 9-2 when LaRoche led off the inning with a double and scored via two groundouts to the right side of the infield.
LaRoche walked with one out in the eighth, moved to second on Jayson Nix's single and scored on Tim Hudson's pinch-hit single.
Orr was 2 for 4 for the Stars with 2 runs batted in. Wilson was 2 for 5 as was Nix. Drew and catcher Koyie Hill were each 2 for 4 and Langerhans went 2 for 3.
Four players had one hit each for Seattle off three Stars pitchers. Ryan Kohlmeier walked a batter in the top of the seventh. Former San Diego Padres closer Heath Bell walked one and struck out one in the eighth.
The Studs had reached the NBCWS championship game each of the last four seasons, also winning in 2013.
| SeattleAB | R | H | BI | |
| Savage, cf | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Hull, 2b | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Holm, lf | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Semlacher, rf | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| McKeithan, dh | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Lavelle, dh | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Boe, 3b | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Arrington, 1b | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Breda, c | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Prater, ss | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| TOTALS | 24 | 2 | 4 | 2 |
| Kansas Stars | AB | R | H | BI |
| Orr, cf | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Wilson, ss | 5 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Inge, 3b | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Ad.LaRoche, 1b | 3 | 3 | 2 | 3 |
| J.Nix, 2b | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Drew, dh | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 |
| Hudson, ph | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Hill, c | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Langerhans, lf | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Marquis, lf | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Wesson, rf | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| TOTALS | 39 | 10 | 18 | 9 |
Seattle..... 001 001 00x -- 2 4 1
Kansas Stars.... 102 411 01x -- 10 18 0
One out when game ended.
E -- Prater. DP -- Kansas Stars 1 (Marquis and Ad.LaRoche).
LOB -- Seattle 6, Kansas Stars 10.
2B -- Savage, Ad.LaRoche, Hill, Wesson. HR --Inge (4th inn., 1 on, 1 out), Ad.LaRoche (3rd inn., 1 on, 1 out). SF -- Ad.LaRoche. SB -- Holm, McKeithan.
| Seattle | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
| Wood | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Humes | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Goodgion | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Sim | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Thompson | 1.1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Stars | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO |
| Guthrie (W) | 6 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 5 |
| Kohlmeier | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Bell | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Sim pitched to one batter in the seventh.
WP -- Wood.