Advance pitcher Gus Garner struck out eight, while walking two and allowing five hits, in the Hornets' 10-2 victory over Bernie on Tuesday, Sept. 8,DEXTER STATESMAN/Kyle Smith

BERNIE — Advance right-hander Gus Garner demonstrated Tuesday why NCAA Division I universities are keeping a close eye on him.

Garner, a 6-foot, 230-pound pitcher, allowed two runs and five hits over five innings, leading the Hornets to a 10-2 season-opening win over Bernie.

“Gus did a tremendous job,” first-year Advance coach Marty Young said. “Murray State and UT-Martin are looking at him right now. He’s done an outstanding job as a leader, especially with me coming in new. He’s really embraced it.”

One of the Hornets’ only two seniors, Garner struck out eight and walked two, leaving the game after facing three batters in the top of the sixth.

“He was jumping on hitters, as a good pitcher should do,” Bernie coach Marcus Massey said. “He was pitching ahead in the count, mixing guys up. He threw well today for them. He was tough to hit.”

Young commended his senior’s work ethic.

“He works with Todd Pennington at Balls-N-Strikes (in Cape Girardeau). He’s a Missouri Bull,” Young said. “He’s worked so hard on his own. He’s put so much time and resources into his game.”

His counterpart, junior John Nimmo, pitched well before running into trouble in the Hornets’ six-run fifth inning.

Through four innings, the right-hander allowed two runs on five hits with six strikeouts and one walk. In the fifth, he permitted six runs on three hits with two strikeouts and three walks while recording only two outs.

“When he works ahead (and) starts the batter off with a first-pitch strike, he can do some things,” Massey said. “He can mix it up a little bit. He can go in and out on guys. He’s tough. A few guys there, he fell behind, especially in that one inning that kind of got him in trouble.”

The Hornets began the rally with one out, as Tyler Davis and Jed Garner drew consecutive walks. Gus Garner loaded the bases with a long single over the center fielder’s head. The base runners held up because they were unsure whether Wyatt Nimmo would make the catch.

Cleanup batter Hayden Laird deposited a single into shallow center field to drive home the first run. 

After John Nimmo struck out the next batter, Jack Bailey drew a bases-loaded walk, and the team’s seventh- and eighth-place hitters, sophomores Jaxon Limbaugh and Kip Holman, hit two-run singles to give Advance an 8-0 lead. The latter hit came against Bernie reliever Wyatt Nimmo.

“We’re young. We’re all sophomores. They came through,” Young said. “We kind of pecked and clawed and played small ball. Ran the bases a little bit, tried to get us a cushion and make it easier on Gus.”

Six players in Advance’s starting lineup were sophomores.

The Hornets threatened to the end the game in the sixth inning on the 10-run mercy rule. Laird’s single drove home the ninth run and the 10th run scored on Hunter Tidwell’s ground out to shortstop.

Bernie (1-3) kept the game going with two runs in the sixth. John Nimmo drove home a run, and Tad Davis’ one-out double to right-center cut the deficit to eight.

“It seemed like it took forever,” Massey said of scoring a run. “We had to get down eight to do it, but it seemed at the end we got a little more aggressive in the box and started swinging at pitches we could hit and taking pitches we couldn’t hit. … That was good to see when you’re down and you continue to fight and give yourself a chance.”

Tyler Davis opened the game with an infield hit, stole second, advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored on Gus Garner’s ground out to shortstop to give Advance a 1-0 first-inning lead.

Laird ripped a leadoff double in the fourth and scored on the back end of a double steal.

Story written by Kyle Smith of the Dexter Statesman.  Thanks for your outstanding coverage.