The Fayette baseball team is on a roll. On Wednesday, the Falcons picked up their fourth straight win with a 9-3 rout of longtime Lewis & Clark Conference rival Marceline.

The contest was the final for the two teams as part of the 50-year-old conference. Marceline is headed to the Grand Rivers Conference next year. Fayette is one of eight schools helping to form a new conference, the Central State 8, beginning in the fall.

The Falcons improve to 6-11 overall with one L&C game left to play. On Tuesday, they hosted Salisbury after the Advertiser went to press for their final game ever in the storied conference.

Fayette coach Andy Oeth said on Wednesday that Tuesday’s L&C finale would be bittersweet, but he’s looking forward to the new conference.

“So many of the coaches in this league have become friends and mentored me,” he said. “The guys who I’ve coached against have been so good to me. There are a lot of things I’m going to miss about it. But we’re going to try to keep a lot of these teams on our schedule.”

The Falcons opened the game with their stallion on the mound. Fayette ace Payton Oeth, a hard-throwing right-hander, was spectacular, allowing just three earned runs on seven hits with six strikeouts in a complete-game performance.

“Anytime he’s on the mound, no matter what team we’re facing, we have a chance,” said Coach Oeth. “He’s a next-level pitcher. He’s the guy who’s going to give you an opportunity any night. If you play good defense behind him, and then you put the ball in play, you’re going to have a really good chance to win.”

Fayette’s schedule worked out so that Coach Oeth didn’t have to worry much about the pitch count. It was the team’s third game in three days. Sophomore Ethan Bean threw 57 pitches in a winning performance on Monday against Paris. And freshman Ledgyr Conrow tossed 97 pitches over six innings the night before against Jamestown. 

Oeth mopped up against Jamestown, earning the win with only 16 pitches in one inning, allowing his arm to be relatively fresh for Wednesday’s conference game.

“We were in a little trouble because we just played three in a row, and I didn’t have Ethan to go to next. But it really turned out well,” said Coach Oeth.

Adding to that, Fayette benefitted from a six-day break before facing Salisbury on Tuesday.

“We’re looking forward to a break where we have some time to work on some things,” said Coach Oeth.

And while Oeth is undoubtedly one of the top pitchers in the conference, he’s also a massive threat behind the plate. When on the mound, junior Kaleb Friebe dons the mask behind the dish to assemble a formidable battery for the Falcons.

“Kaleb, having the game he did behind the plate really helps,” Coach Oeth said. “He is really doing a great job. Those guys have caught and pitched to each other for a long time.”

Friebe also had a solid night at the plate on offense, leading off the bottom of the first inning with a double on a line drive to right field. He advanced to third on a wild pitch and crossed the plate on the first of four Marceline errors on the night to put the Falcons on the board.

Fayette broke the game open in the bottom of the third, batting around the lineup. The Tigers’ pitchers walked three batters and hit one batter while giving up three hits, including doubles by Oeth and Bean, followed by a single by Oeth, his second of the inning. Two errors by Marceline compounded the Tigers’ frustrations and allowed Fayette to extend the inning. 

After three frames, Fayette led 8-0.

While the box score may not indicate it, a key difference in the game came down to how teams dealt with errors. Marceline’s four errors contributed to a somewhat lopsided score. Fayette committed five errors on the night, but each time managed to get out of the inning marginally unscathed.

Back-to-back Falcon errors in the top of the fourth allowed Marceline two base runners to start the inning. But the defense buckled down and got the next two outs. Oeth then delivered a four-pitch strikeout to get out of the inning with two runners stranded in scoring position.

“Our big thing is that when we made errors, we overcame them,” Coach Oeth said. “We didn’t let them compound and weigh on us mentally.”

Marceline’s bats came alive in the top of the fifth. The Tigers plated three runs on two singles, two hard-hit doubles, and a hit batsman.

The Falcons picked up an insurance run in the bottom of the fifth. After reaching on a walk, sophomore Austin Kunze rounded the bases on a single from sophomore Parker LaValley and scored on another Marceline error to put Fayette in front 9-3. 

Fayette allowed one baserunner in each of the final two innings, one on a single and another on an error. Once again, strong pitching backed up by solid defense quickly dispatched any chances for the Tigers to score. The final out came on a four-pitch strikeout.

“I’m excited about what they’re doing right now,” Coach Oeth said. “They’re getting hot at the right time. The things I really believe they could do, they are starting to do. And they’re doing it against teams that are good. Marceline is no slouch. They beat some really good teams this year. And they’re well-coached, too.”

Fayette finished with five hits, of which three went for extra bases. Friebe, Bean, and Oeth each doubled. The Falcons drove in four runs and walked eight times.

Oeth led the way at the plate with the team’s only multi-hit game, going 2-for-4 with a double, a run scored, and two RBI. Friebe went 1-for-3 with a double, two runs scored, and a walk. LaValley finished 1-for-2 with a run scored and two walks. Bean had one hit in three at-bats with an RBI and a run scored.

“Tonight, I think they really did well, top to bottom. The top half of the lineup is really doing a great job. They put the ball in play and did a lot of things,” Coach Oeth said.

Marceline’s freshman reliever, Gage Teeter, took the loss, pitching the final 3.1 innings. He allowed five unearned runs on three hits with three walks and a strikeout. Tigers’ lefty Trace Huber allowed four runs (3 earned) on two hits in the first 2.2 innings of the game. He walked five batters and retired four on strikes.

The Tigers were led by leadoff hitter Dax Thomas with three hits in four at-bats. Cody Rogers showed his power at the plate, going 2-for-4 with a two-out triple in the third inning and a run scored.

Teeter and sophomore Harrison Green finished with one hit apiece, both doubles. Of Marceline’s seven hits, three went for extra bases.

Fayette and Marceline are not only longtime conference rivals but are both among four other teams in Class 2 District 7. 

The Falcons have now defeated two of the teams in the district, Slater and Marceline. 

“I hope that helps us in district seeding,” Oeth said after the game.

Wednesday’s game marks a pivot for the Falcons as they take a hard look at the final stretch of the regular season. Their next opponent was set to be Salisbury (5-8), also a district opponent, which the Falcons have not defeated since 2016. 

“Salisbury has struggled a little bit this season, but they’re going to be good. They’re going to play us strong no matter what.”

The first pitch was scheduled for 5 p.m. on Tuesday at Davis Field after the Advertiser had gone to press. It marked the final home game, as the Falcons finish out the regular season with a three-game road trip.

On Wednesday, the Falcons play their second game in a row at Prairie Home (6-6). Both games will be good measuring sticks for Fayette with districts looming.

On Monday, May 6, Fayette makes the trip to Tipton in a preview of Central State 8 play. The following day, the Falcons close out the regular season at Pilot Grove. The district tournament will begin on Thursday, May 9.