BY HAILEY CHAPMAN
LIBERAL — The Hays Larks offense struggled for the third game against longtime rival Liberal on Thursday night. Hays could only muster seven hits, a season low, in a 6-3 loss to the Bee Jays.
Starter Micheal Gilliland took the loss on the mound in five innings of work. Gilliland started strong, but the Bee Jays were able to tack on four runs in the bottom of the third and two more in the bottom of the sixth.
Hays was able to pull one across in the top of the fourth, but Liberal’s Payton Strambler minimized the damage with a groundout and a strikeout to end the rally.
Hernan Yanez, George Southerland and Max McGuire were the only Larks able to pull runs across. Southerland had a team high two hits, while Justin Lee, Jarrod Belbin, Matt Cavanagh, Yanez and McGuire all had one.
Tommy Garcia and Rustin Hays combined for the close and gave up only one hit, but the offense was unable to bounce back and fell for the second game in a row.
The two losses to the Bee Jays are the first consecutive losses the Larks have faced all year. It is also the first series loss as the team moves to 14-4 overall and 5-3 in conference play.
The Larks start a series against the Valley Center Mud Daubers on Saturday at home. First pitch is set for 7 p.m. at Larks Park.