Fayette regrouped from a three-game losing streak with a decisive 15-3 win over Glasgow last Wednesday, then fell to area powerhouse Salisbury 6-3 on Friday.

The win at Glasgow completed a clean sweep against teams in the Advertiser’s coverage area. The Falcons opened the season with three straight wins over Higbee, New Franklin, and Harrisburg, in their best start to the season in more than two decades.

“We are excited. We want to be able to beat those teams close to us,” said Fayette coach Andy Oeth. “For these guys, it means a lot to be able to have those bragging rights.”

Fayette sophomore Easton Fehling picked up the win on the mound in his first start of the season. The right-hander completed four hitless innings against Glasgow, allowing two earned runs on six walks with three strikeouts.

“We were trying to see how far he could go and to get him to push himself a little bit more because he is a guy who will pitch for us in bigger games in the future,” Coach Oeth explained. “I think he did a great job. He struggled at the end with some guys on base, but he had the fortitude to get out of it. I’m really proud of him.”

Freshman Sawyer Asbury mopped up the final inning. He surrendered one earned run on two hits and a walk with one strikeout.

At the plate, Fayette’s offense found its rhythm early against Glasgow pitching. The Falcons scored five runs in the first inning against Yellowjacket sophomore starter Brody Adams on four singles, two walks, and an error.

Fayette added seven runs in the top of the fourth and three runs in the top of the fifth to end the game after five innings. Senior leadoff Caleb Craig and senior cleanup hitter Payton Oeth each had multi-hit games. Craig went 2-for-3 with an RBI and two runs scored. Oeth led the Falcons with a game-high three RBI and three runs scored while hitting 2-for-3. He also swiped a base.

Junior Thad Quint went 1-for-1 with two runs scored and walked three times. Junior Parker LaValley had a single and scored twice. Senior Ethan Bean went 1-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored. Asbury went 1-for-3 with a run scored and drove in one run.

“All our guys really contributed and did well,” Coach Oeth said. “We improved by not watching strikes. If it’s a strike, we want to swing at it.”

Adams took the loss on the mound for the winless Yellowjackets after allowing five runs (4 earned) on five hits and three walks over the first two innings. Junior reliever Jaden DeMint surrendered seven runs (2 earned) on one hit and five walks in 1.2 innings. Junior Owen Colvin recorded Glasgow’s only strikeout while giving up three runs (1 earned) on two hits and a walk.

Despite a home run by Payton Oeth two nights later at home against Salisbury, the Falcons were unable to regain the lead against the familiar opponent in what ended up being a 6-3 loss. The two teams were conference rivals for decades before Fayette left the Lewis & Clark Conference two years ago. Now both squads have a new rivalry as they are both a part of the same district.

“They are a very good baseball team that will most likely find themselves deep in the playoffs unless we can find a way to do something about that in the playoffs, Coach Oeth said.”

The Panthers entered the game ranked ninth in the state in Class 2 with a 7-2 overall record.

“It was a really good game,” said Coach Oeth. “Overall, we would like to have put more runs across. However, we were really excited for the fact that we could really hang with a team the caliber of Salisbury, which is state ranked.”

Fayette took a brief lead in the bottom of the second when Panthers pitcher Austin Cravens delivered a bases-loaded walk—his fourth free pass of the inning—with two outs.

But Cravens helped his own cause with an RBI single in the top of the third to even the score at 1-1. The Panthers pulled ahead with two runs in each of the fourth and fifth innings.

Fayette cut the lead to two runs when Payton Oeth delivered a two-run shot over the left field fence in the bottom of the sixth off of Salisbury reliever Caleb Sturm. Quint led off the inning with a line-drive single, setting up the two-RBI homer.

“Payton had a home run that was an absolute blast to left field, and we were excited to be able to put those runs up on the board,” Coach Oeth said.

Salisbury added an insurance run in the top of the seventh after reaching on a Fayette error to lead off the inning.

The Falcons had a chance to at least tie the game down by three with one out in the bottom of the seventh. Oeth singled to begin a late-inning rally. Then with two outs, Bean singled on a liner to center field. But Sturm struck out two of five batters faced in the last half-inning, delivering a final strikeout on a 2-2 pitch to end the game and strand two Fayette runners on base.

Oeth took the loss on the mound after striking out four in seven complete innings. Of six runs allowed, only three were earned off seven hits without issuing a walk.

“Payton threw really, really well,” Coach Oeth said. “The six runs probably don’t make it look like that’s the case, but he actually threw very well. He didn’t walk anyone, and we had a couple of errors that hurt us.”

The Fayette lineup struggled despite walking eight times. The Falcons struck out 15 times and made just five hits. Two of those hits came from Oeth, a two-run homer and a seventh-inning single. Quint, LaValley, and Bean each recorded a hit. Craig added on RBI after he was dealt a bases-loaded walk in the second. Asbury swiped two bases.

The loss was Fayette’s fourth in five games, but the Falcons remained above .500 at 5-4 overall. On Tuesday they were to host Central State 8 opponent Eugene (6-6) for a 5 p.m. tilt.

“Overall, we still feel like we’re headed in the right direction even though it was a loss,” said Coach Oeth. “I’m still really excited about where we are. I think the future is bright coming up in the next several weeks. The schedule doesn’t necessarily get easier, but Salisbury is probably the toughest team that we’re going to see at least until we face Russellville.”

Fayette plays it’s final game in a three-game home stand tonight (Wednesday) against Slater (4-2) before traveling to Westran (3-3) on Friday.