Yoemen take advantage of early miscues in rout of Connally

In any sport it’s important to take advantage of the other team’s miscues. On Monday, Yoe baseball did that and more in a 8-0 season opening victory over the Connally Cadets.

After starting pitcher Jason Llanas retired the side in the top of the first, Cameron’s first three batters of 2017 reached base via the error. The Yoemen capitalized by pushing across four runs to build all the momentum needed to move to 1-0.

“Our guys have been working hard the last two weeks,” said Yoe head coach John Broussard. “We had a big first inning and capitalized on some errors and stole the momentum right off the bat and we didn’t let off. It was a complete game and it was the first complete game I have seen these guys play. I am excited.”

Catcher Alex Alonso had the big night offensively, going 2-4 with two doubles and 5 runs driven in. The sophomore hit a bases-clearing 3-RBI double in the fourth to put the Yoemen up 8-0. That was more than enough for Llanas, who threw 6 innings, giving up just one hit, walking none while striking out 7.

“I went up there just trying to throw strikes and let my defense work with ground balls and pop flies to get through the inning,” said Llanas.

“I couldn't ask anything else from him,” added Broussard. “His hard work is going to pay off and I’m glad we have two more years from him. There are a lot of big things that are going to happen for him.”

Senior Caden Harris finished 1-4 with an RBI triple in the second, moving to score to 5-0. Llanas joined Alonso as the other Yoemen with multiple hits, finishing 2-4 with two singles. Bryce Welsh, Bryce Brashear, and Brandon Wilkins had singles to total up the Yoemen’s hit total at 8.

Zack Andress relieved Llanas in the 7th inning, striking out the side. The Cadets went down on strikes 10 times on the evening. Connally finished with five errors while the Yoemen had just one.

Marion Tournament

Cameron will be in the Marion tournament this Thursday through Saturday. Cameron will play their pool games in Navarro. On Thursday, the Yoemen will match up with Navarro at 3 p.m. and Lago Vista at 5 p.m. Friday action includes Devine at 11 a.m. and Luling at 3 p.m. Lago Vista is ranked number one in 3A, according to TxHighSchoolBaseball.com. Cameron’s pool play results will have a direct impact on Saturday’s game time.