The Benton Tigers clinched their seventh straight District 1-4A baseball championship with a 12-0 victory over the Northwood Falcons on Wednesday at Northwood.
The Tigers improved to 27-5 overall and 11-0 in district. Second-place Northwood dropped to 17-11 and 9-2.
Game 2 of the two-game series was scheduled for Thursday at Benton, but it has been postponed until Friday at 6 because of rain.
Defending state champion Benton is No. 4 in the Class 4A power rankings and will host a first-round playoff game next week.
Also in District 1-4A, the Bossier Bearkats completed the regular season with a 10-0, 14-2 sweep of Woodlawn.
The Bearkats (13-13, 4-8) are No. 29 in the 4A power rankings. If Bossier and Benton remain where they are now in the final rankings, they would meet in the first round. However, that could change by the time the official rankings are posted by the LHSAA on Sunday.
The District 1-5A champion Parkway Panthers closed the regular season with victories over different opponents Wednesday at Parkway. The Panthers defeated Summerfield 13-1 in the first game and North Webster 10-0 in the second.
Parkway (26-5), which has won 19 of its last 20, is No. 3 in the 5A power rankings and will host a first-round playoff game. If the current rankings hold, the Panthers would play 1-5A foe Southwood.
At Northwood, Landon Joyner pitched a one-hitter in the six-inning game. He walked four and struck out three.
The Tigers pounded out 17 hits. Clint Lasiter went 4-for-4 with two home runs and four RBI.
Cole Horton went 3-for-4 with a home run. Cade Scott also had three hits, including a double.
Sam Simmons went 2-for-4 with a double and two RBI. Tanner Timms and Brennan Blaylock had two hits each, including doubles.
Daniel Halbert hit a two-run home run.
Benton led 2-0 after four innings then blew the game open with five in the fifth and five in the sixth.
The Tigers started the fifth with four consecutive singles. Blaylock and Timms both hit their doubles later in the frame.
Lasiter and Horton hit back-to-back home runs in the sixth. Halbert’s home run came after Simmons’ double.
At Rusheon, Cody Deen pitched three perfect innings and struck out seven in Bossier’s 10-0 victory. He also went 2-for-2 with a double.
Coleman Beeson also went 2-for-2 with a double. Jamaal Brooks had a double.
The Bearkats scored 12 runs in the second in the four-inning second game.
Jon-Mikal Robertson allowed one hit and struck out six in three innings.
Eight Bearkats combined for nine hits. Brooks went 2-for-2. Robertson had a triple and two RBI. Chase Bounds and Avery Williams both had doubles.
At Parkway, 10 Panthers combined for 14 hits in the five-inning game against Summerfield. Amani Larry went 2-for-3 with a home run and double.
Eric Brown had a triple, double and two RBI. Caleb Reese went 2-for-2 with two RBI.
Gabe Larry also went 2-for-2. Hayden Knotts had a double and two RBI. Hunter Holder also had a double. JP Christner had two RBI.
Collier Cloinger allowed two hits and struck out six in three innings.
Christion Rayner pitched a five-inning two-hitter with 10 strikeouts against North Webster.
Brown ended the game with a three-run homer in the bottom of the fifth. Cloinger had three RBI and Reese had two. Knotts had an RBI-double.
