Carbondale Eliminates Post #2504
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[ The loss ended Pinckneyville's summer at 5-13.
Carbondale, which won just twice during the regular season, notched its second tourney victory and will play Steeleville Wednesday at 8:00.
Wheeler fanned a dozen Pinckneyville batters and walked four, carrying a shutout into the sixth inning.
Post #2504 finally broke through when Drew Dudek reached on a fielders choice and came around to score on a two-out error.
In the eighth, Michael Rakers advanced to third base following an error and two wild pitchers, scoring the second run on Dudek's sacrifice fly.
Carbondale scored single runs in the first, second, sixth, seventh and eight innings. Wheeler ran into more trouble in the ninth after Dustin Winter walked and went to second after a wild pitch.
Garrick Hale's two-out hit made the score 5-3 and Wheeler walked Thomas McConnell.
Brad Richardson relieved and Rakers popped out to end things.
Matt Gill pitched seven strong innings for Post #2504, giving seven hits while striking out 11. Dudek and Hale finished up.
Hale was 3-for-5 at the plate. Dylan Hagene (2-for-5), Gill and Rakers also hit safely.
For Carbondale, James Combs went 3-for-5 with former Du Quoinian Wheeler adding two hits and the first RBI.
Play starts Wednesday on Chep Kessel Field in Murphysboro's Riverside Park Stadium with Murphysboro (32-3) and Sparta (16-7) meeting in the winners bracket final.
First pitch time is 5 o'clock.
Carbondale (Post #514) 5,
Pinckneyville (Post #2504) 3
#2504 000 001 011—3 7 2
#514 110 001 11x—5 8 2
Gill, Dudek (8), Hale (9) and Rakers, Dudek (9). Wheeler, Richardson (9) and Nelms.
WP—Wheeler, 2-1. LP—Gill.
POST #2504 HITTERS: Gill 1-5, Hale 3-5 (RBI), McConnell 0-2, Rakers 1-4, Dudek 0-2 (RBI), Thornton 0-3, Chandler 0-3, Shopinski 0-4, Hagene 2-4, Winter 0-1.
POST #514 HITTERS: Combs 3-5, Gray 0-4, Cheek 1-5 (2B), Nelms 0-3, Lustman 1-4 (RBI), Richardson 1-4 (RBI), Henderson 0-3, Wheeler 2-4 (RBI), Nance 0-4.
RECORDS: Pinckneyville ends 5-14. Carbondale is 4-11.