Staff reports
Manhattan High baseball met a formidable foe on its home turf Wednesday, falling in both games to Great Bend and snapping the Indians’ seven-game win streak.
Great Bend, second in the 5A West standings, improved to 19-5 with the sweep. Manhattan dropped to 16-6 and fell into a tie with Campus for second in the 6A West standings.
In the opener, a 10-run fifth inning powered Great Bend to a 12-3 win. Manhattan’s Easton Duff was tagged for nine runs over 4 1/3 innings, while Jude Say finished the final 1 2/3 innings. Great Bend’s Carson Umphres went the distance, allowing nine hits and three runs with six strikeouts.
Offensively, Ian Premer sparked Great Bend with a 3-for-4 performance, driving in three runs and scoring three more. Premer, a multi-sport star, is a four-star tight end recruit and averaged 24.4 points and 11.5 rebounds on the hardwood. He’s currently rated 247Sports’ No. 1 football prospect in Kansas, with offers from both Kansas State football and basketball.
Manhattan’s own football and baseball star, Carter Aslin, collected a two-hit game with two runs scored from the leadoff spot, but was the only Indian to record a multi-hit game.
In Game 2, Manhattan’s offense came alive with 14 hits to Great Bend’s 10, but ultimately four errors contributed to a 16-7 loss.
Great Bend plated nine runs across the first three innings. Three runs came against Say before Makai Michaelis stepped in for four innings in relief and was tagged for nine runs (six earned).
Brayson Gnirk led the offensive effort for Manhattan with three hits, while Sam Spiegel also added a two-hit game, including a double and three RBI.
Manhattan has a quick turnaround, hosting Emporia for its regular-season finale Thursday night. The Indians’ matchup was not complete by press time. Coverage of the contest will appear in Saturday’s edition of The Mercury.