The IMS baseball team hung in with #5 Don Bosco most of the game Friday night but couldn’t muster much offense in a 6-2 loss to the Dons at IMS. Don Bosco opened up the scoring in the first with a two out rally as Dalton Smith drove in Brett Becker with an RBI single. The Dons added another single tally in the third when it was Smith again with the RBI hit this time driving in Tyler Backes (Back-ess). IMS had their best scoring chance of the night in the fourth inning when they loaded the bases on a walk, a single, and a hit by pitch but were unable to score as Backes came back to strike out the side.

Don Bosco used that momentum to score twice in the fifth on three hits as Backes and Alex Bagbe (Bag-bee) each drove in a run. The Dons would add more insurance in the seventh when a couple of IMS errors led to two more runs. IMS would tally twice in their last at bat when Dallas Nye drove in Cameron Gingerich and Layne Schrock with an RBI single to left off Don Bosco reliever Travis Havel. Following the game IMS Coach Danny Hershberger was proud of how his team competed and the job Tanner Leyden did on the mound to keep IMS in the game all night.

“Tanner did a great job of competing our there, he threw strikes and made them hit some tough pitches, and our defense stepped up for the most part and made some tough plays,” Hershberger said. “I’m really happy with the effort that he put out there tonight, he kept us in the game and that’s all we can ask for.”

Leyden did take the loss for IMS, throwing all seven innings allowing eight hits and six runs, just three of those were earned he struck out six. Backes recorded the win for Don Bosco going five innings allowing two hits and striking out a dozen. Don Bosco is now 9-0 on the season, IMS falls to 4-9.