The St. Marys baseball team continued its early-season momentum on Saturday afternoon, notching its second consecutive victory with a 7-5 home win over Paden City.
Sophomore Desmond Parks recorded his first career varsity pitching win, and fellow sophomore Cayden Barnard came on in relief to earn his first-ever save. The pair helped St. Marys even its record at 4-4.
The Blue Devils exploded for five runs in the bottom of the first inning, with Parks delivering a key two-run double to spark the offense. Brady Rinard and Liam Davis each added RBIs during the early surge, as the home team quickly jumped ahead 5-0.
Paden City responded with four runs in the top of the second, all unearned against Parks. Despite the damage, the sophomore exited with a 5-4 lead after 1.2 innings, allowing just two hits and striking out two.
From there, Barnard took control on the mound. The right-hander tossed 5.1 innings of three-hit ball, striking out 11 and walking three. He allowed just one earned run, which came in the top of the seventh as the Wildcats attempted a late comeback.
St. Marys added single insurance runs in both the third and fourth innings. Those runs proved vital, as Paden City plated one final run in the seventh before Barnard closed the door.
Freshman leadoff hitter Kyle Bullman continued to be a sparkplug for the Blue Devils, collecting two hits and stealing five bases. His season total now stands at 15 stolen bases through eight games.
St. Marys had seven hits in total, with Parks, Rinard, Daniel Winland, Ayden Powell, and Brady Price each contributing one.
With the win, St. Marys moved to 4-4 on the season. The Blue Devils hosted South Harrison on Tuesday and will travel to face Ravenswood on Wednesday.
