LONGVIEW — Cade Moore and the Carthage Bulldogs baseball team wasn’t ready for their season to come an end.

“It wasn’t just the season on the line for me it was my last baseball game on the line,” Moore said. “I want to keep playing and keep playing this game as long as I can in high school. There was some weight on my shoulders and I think I’m a strong guy.”

Moore allowed just one hit in five innings of work on the hill and went 2-for-2 at the plate with a double and two runs scored as Carthage mercy ruled Van 10-0 in five winnings to win Game 3 of the best-of-three 4A Division II bi-district series on Saturday at Longview High.

Ross allowed no walks and struck three in the victory.

The senior got out of an early jam that the Bulldogs parlayed into scoring their first runs of the game in their next at-bats.

After getting Asher Hawkins to ground out to open the game, Grady Baetz singled and on the next pitch Moore hit Landon Smith with a pitch.

Moore settled in and got Rawly Hinch and Connor McCurley each to ground out to end the inning.

“That first inning I thought things were going to get out of hand,” Moore said. “I started off with a hit to the two hole and then I hit the three hole on the very next pitch. I had runners on first and second with no outs but we’ve been emphasizing to be tough all year.

“Those are the situations where being tough gets you out of them and that gave us so much momentum. Then we put up some runs in the second and I got some run support and never looked back.”

Blayton LaGrone led off the second inning with a double but was thrown out trying to stretch it into a triple but that got the Carthage bats hot.

Moore doubled on the next pitch before Brooks Soape walked and River Leach followed with an RBI single for the first run of the game.

No. 9 hitter Cade Ross delivered a two RBI single next to make it a 3-0 game.

“I’m really proud of the effort our team played with,” Carthage Coach John Goodwin said. “The intensity and competitiveness they showed.”

After retiring Van in order in the top of the third, the Bulldogs broke the game open in the bottom half of the inning.

Carthage (16-14-1) scored five runs including a two-RBI single by Soape and Leach’s second-straight RBI single.

Soape went 2-3 with a double, four RBIs and two runs scored in the game.

“It’s no secret that towards the middle of the season and I district I struggled a little bit,” Soape said. “I kept on working and grinding through and trusting it. Now I have all my confidence back.”

With an eight-run cushion Moore didn’t try and do too much, just simply pitching with a lead.

“Cade Moore had been our No. 1 (pitcher) the first three and 1/2 months then he kind of tweaked his elbow,” Goodwin said. “He was right back to being our No. 1 in Game 3 which is a great feeling to have. He looked as good as he had all year.”

Van (29-8) who came into the series ranked No. 4 in Region II and were the undefeated District 15-4A champions simply ran out of pitching in Game 3 as the Bulldogs combined for nine hits in the game.

Even after losing Game 2 9-5 a little more than a 1/2 hour prior, the Bulldogs had full confidence going into Game 3.

“I knew we had them, we had their first pitcher in,” Soape said. “They could’ve ran Randy Johnson out there and I thought we would’ve had him.”

Goodwin said avoiding that first jam with two runners on and one out in the first inning was vital.

“If we can get out of the first unscathed we have a chance to be really good,” Goodwin said. “(Moore) made a couple of pitches down in the zone and River made a big out at third. He played unbelievable all series.”

After Moore hit Smith in the first, the Vandals didn’t get a single runner on base the rest of the game.

Moore pitched with a lead and didn’t try to do anything fancy and at the plate reached base in all three of his plate appearances.

“If you hit you don’t sit,” Moore. “I got the job done today and now I’m focused on round two. We’re rolling right and we have Sunnyvale next week but the train is rolling.”

Carthage will face Sunnyvale in a best-of-three Area round series starting on Thursday night.

Game 1 is scheduled for 7 p.m. with Game 2 Friday at 7 p.m. and the if-necessary Game 3 taking place on Saturday at 3 p.m. with all games being played at Mount Vernon High.

Game 2

Ritter went 2-4 with two runs scored, Soape tripled with two runs scored and LaGrone had an RBI triple but Carthage fell behind early and never recovered in dropping Game 2 to Van 9-5.

Sam Watson singled with an RBI while Maddox Martinez and Leach each singled.

Baetz went 3-3 with an RBI and two runs scored, Smith had a two-RBI double with a run scored and Wyatt Dale had a two-RBI single for the Vandals.