What do you get when you combine freezing temperatures with red-hot bats and nearly flawless pitching? An 18-0 perfect game that had Neosho Wildcats fans forgetting all about the cold.
On Tuesday, Neosho High School starters Jack Combs and reliever Eligh Qualls turned in a performance for the ages, striking out eight of the nine batters they faced in a three-inning run-rule shortened victory over Parkview High School. The duo needed just 38 pitches to seal the win—Combs fanned five without issuing a walk, while Qualls struck out the side in the third to close it out.
But the real fireworks came from the Wildcats' bats, which erupted for 17 runs in the bottom of the first inning alone. It was a relentless assault that saw Neosho send nearly two dozen batters to the plate before Parkview could catch its breath.
The scoring started with a Parkview error that brought Gage Harvel home, followed by Colton Harvel stealing home to make it 2-0. Cooper Charlton then drove in Logan Hurn with a single, and the floodgates opened. Jaiden Fisher singled in Drake Jennings, and after Combs was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, Gage Harvel lined a shot to center to push the lead to 6-0.
The hits kept coming: Colton Harvel singled in Fisher, Tevin Beaver sacrificed in Wyatt Woodward, and Jennings laced a line drive to left to score Gage Harvel. A wild pitch brought Colton Harvel sprinting home for a 10-0 lead—and the Wildcats weren't done. Shayne Rabauliman singled in Jennings, Combs crushed a liner to left to score Charlton, and Qualls was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to make it 13-0.
Before the inning mercifully ended, Neosho tacked on four more runs: Gage Harvel drew a bases-loaded walk to score Fisher, Woodward scored when Colton Harvel was hit by a pitch, Qualls crossed the plate on a Beaver single, and Gage Harvel came home on another Vikings error to make it 17-0.
Combs struck out the side in the second inning, and Neosho added its final run in the bottom of the frame when Gage Harvel drove in Fisher. Qualls then entered in the third and struck out the side to secure the combined perfect game—a feat that's rare at any level of baseball.
At the plate, Fisher led the charge with a perfect 3-for-3 performance, scoring three runs and driving in one. Gage Harvel went 2 for 3 with three RBIs and three runs, while Beaver and Combs each finished 2 for 2 with two RBIs. Neosho's 13 hits were all singles, save one double from Combs.
The win improves Neosho to 17-11 on the season, but the Wildcats won't have long to celebrate. A much tougher test awaits Thursday at 4:30 p.m. when they travel to face Webb City High School (22-4)—a matchup that promises to be a true measure of how far this team can go.