BASEBALL: Smith no-hits Red Bud, Indians win 11-1

Du Quoin senior right-hander A.J. Smith fired a no-hitter on Monday afternoon at Red Bud, striking out fourteen Mustketeers and walking three in the Indians' 11-0, seven-inning victory. Smith added four hits at the plate as the Indians evened their record at 2-2.

"A.J. was phenomenal today," said DHS head coach Tim Craft. "A no hitter and 4-for-4 at the plate. You can't have a much better day."

Smith (4-4, R, RBI, BB) wasn't the only star, though, at least offensively. Brock Bullar drove in four runs and finished 2-for-5 (R, 4 RBI, 2B). He put the Indians up 2-0 with his two-out, two-run double in the top of the third inning.

"It was good to see Brock Bullar break out at the plate," said Craft. "He has been hitting the ball right at people the first few games."

The bottom third of the order was red-hot, too. Ryan O'Rourke (2-4, 2 R, RBI, HR), Jordan Edwards (2-4, R, RBI) and Cole Hopkins (2-2, 2 R, RBI, 2 BB) each had a pair of hits as the 7-8-9 spots in the Indian lineup combined to go 6-for-10.

O'Rourke's blast made it 3-0 in the top of the fourth, and Bullar added two more RBIs in Du Quoin's four-run fifth.

At that point, Smith already had more than enough offensive support to work with. He sent down fourteen straight batters between the first and sixth innings and fanned seven in a row between the second and fourth frames.

Jacob Valier (1-3, 2 R, RBI, BB) also hit safely for the Indians.

Du Quoin begins a three-day stretch of home games on Tuesday against Goreville. They'll host Zion-Benton on Wednesday and Chester on Thursday in a rematch of last year's Regional Championship.