Gavin Allen is viewed as the leader of Community R-6, and he proved why on Good Friday.
The senior pitched a complete game shutout against Prairie Home/Bunceton at home, striking out a season-high 14 and allowing four hits in a 4-0 win to extend Community’s winning streak to five games. Allen also launched his first home run of the year as the Trojans (6-1) also had a three cross on the second home run off Mason Carroll’s bat.
Allen managed to strike out three Panthers in an inning twice as the swings-and-misses piled up after the first inning. He said he felt more confident in a certain pitch than in previous starts.
“My fastball was the main thing,” Allen said. “In my prior starts, I couldn’t control that one as much. I also felt really good today and felt like I was throwing harder as well.”
Community R-6 head coach Joel Krato said he thought the team was more focused against the Panthers than Thursday at Van-Far as Community had several run-scoring opportunities in the middle of the game. The Trojans didn’t seize any of them until the sixth inning with runners on second and third with no outs. With Carroll in the box, Krato thought about using some small ball until Carroll launched a long ball to make it 4-0.
“It’s funny I was going to squeeze with him,” Krato said. “Then I was like, ‘No, let’s wait until there’s a strike' and he hits the 2-0 pitch out. He’s been the cleanup hitter for us since he was a freshman as a 14-15 year old. That’s what you expect out of your 4 hole hitter, especially someone who is as talented as he is.”
Community (1-0 CAC) hosts New Haven (0-8) at 5 p.m. Monday before hosting Central Activities Conference foe Sturgeon (2-4, 1-1 CAC) at 5 p.m. Thursday.
Look for the full story in the Wednesday, April 12, 2023, edition of the Mexico Ledger.
