ARCANUM – The Arcanum Trojans battled back from an early deficit to defeat the visiting Brookville Blue Devils 10-7 in non-conference varsity baseball action.
Brookville jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning, but Arcanum answered immediately with three runs of its own in the bottom half and continued to respond throughout the night.
The game featured a tight, consistent strike zone behind the plate, with Arcanum starter Luke Stephens adapting well on the mound and earning the win.
“It was tight both ways,” said Arcanum veteran coach Randy Baker. “We had to adapt to it, and I thought we did a decent job of that. Luke pitched a really good game. He got squeezed a little bit, but it was fair on both sides. He pitched really well, and I am proud of him.”
Brookville took its early lead after Brayden Reich was hit by a pitch, a dropped third strike allowed another run to score, and Grayson Reynolds lifted a sacrifice fly to make it 3-0.
Arcanum tied the game in the bottom of the first with two outs. Derek Longstreth singled, stole third, and then stole home for the Trojans’ first run. Stephens walked, and Ethan Kearney delivered a two-run single to even the score at 3-3.
Brookville regained the lead in the second on a Blake Sprada single, but Arcanum answered again. With the bases loaded and two outs, Stephens lined a two-run single to right field, giving the Trojans a 5-4 lead.
Carson Collins singled down the right-field line in the fourth to tie the game at 5-5 before Arcanum took control in the fifth. Stephens was hit by a pitch to open the inning, and Bishop Cartwright later scored on a Brookville error. Landon Brewer followed with a solo home run to left field, putting the Trojans in front 8-5.
Arcanum added two more runs in the sixth. Kolton Quigney singled to left, Stephens and Cartwright reached on back-to-back Brookville errors, and Cole Kessler came through with a two-run single to left to extend the lead to 10-5.
“We had really good at-bats,” Baker said. “We ran the bases really well tonight, and we put the ball in play. That’s what we needed to do. Tonight we got balls on the ground, and good things happened when we did that.”
Brookville scored two runs late, but the comeback attempt ended when Sprada lined out to Arcanum third baseman Ethan Kearney for the final out.
Stephens earned the win, allowing six hits and five runs, two earned, over five innings while striking out four and walking three. Caleb Baker earned the save for Arcanum.
“Caleb needed to throw, so we got him out there,” Baker said.
Ryan Hensley took the loss for Brookville, allowing five runs on four hits over two innings with one strikeout and three walks.
Longstreth led Arcanum with three hits in five at-bats. Stephens, Kearney, and Kessler each drove in two runs for the Trojans.
“Our first five runs we scored with two outs – that showed a lot of toughness in us,” Baker said. “We were very focused at the plate, that was good to see.”
Collins went 3-for-4 and led Brookville with two RBIs, while Lucas Horn added two hits for the Blue Devils.
BOX SCORE:
123 456 7 R H E
310 100 2 5 8 7 Brookville
320 032 X 10 8 2 Arcanum
