BY JESS KIRCHHOFF
On Tuesday night the TMP Monarchs hosted the Smith Center Raiders in a baseball doubleheader.
The first game shot, or rather rolled off to a rather slow start. Neither team was able to score within the first two innings and partially into the third.
After the initial slow start, the Monarchs scored one run in the bottom of the third.
Soon thereafter Smith Center began to rally the bats and grabbed a 2-1 lead in the top of the fifth. The Raiders then continued to lengthen the lead to 3-1 with one more run in the top of the seventh.
Though Smith Center looked to be comfortably in the lead, by the end of the seventh inning the game got close once again when the Monarchs took advantage of a late burst of energy to score twice in the bottom of the seventh, knotting the score at 3-3 heading into the eighth inning.
TMP carried on their momentum from the seventh inning and captured a last-minute run in the bottom of the eighth to win the first game 4-3.
Despite the sluggish start of the first contest, the second game began with a boom. TMP was able to build on the recent success of the first game with a run in the top of the first inning. This early run gave the Monarchs a quick jumpstart on the Raiders
After the loss of the first game and the new score for their opponents, the Raiders were able to hold the Monarchs to their one-run until the Raiders rallied with two runs of their own in the top of the fourth.
In a fight to split on the night, the Raiders then were able to pull in two more runners in the top of the fifth.
Though the Raiders still held the lead, one more of TMP’s players was able to find the plate in the bottom of the fifth.
The Raiders lead held steady with a victory over the Monarchs when the game was called due to time restrictions, with Smith Center holding on 4-3.