Rain and hail left Corbett Field in less-than-optimal playing conditions on Thursday night, but that didn’t stop the Bishop Ryan Lions and South Prairie Royals from getting their Region VI play in game underway.

Fresh off the conclusion of the regular season, both teams were ready to go with a matchup against Surrey on the line for next week. In what was a back-and-forth affair early on, the Lions eventually pulled away, beating the Royals 14-4 in five innings.

Lance Pitner got the Royals going in the top of the first inning with a leadoff double. Pitner would steal third base and come home on a fielder’s choice. Layne Korgel followed suit by driving in a run on a single, and all of the sudden, the Royals jumped out to a quick 2-0 lead.

The Lions, however, would come roaring back in the bottom half of the frame. Caden Dauphinais walked and made his way to third on an error. He would come home to score on a fielder’s choice. Brady Feller tied things up with an RBI single, as both teams came out of the gates with a great start offensively.

Pitner continued his monster day at the plate in the top of the second with an RBI triple to put the Royals back on top 3-2. The triple gave Pitner two extra-base hits through the first two innings. Once again, the Lions would counter in the bottom half of the frame to make it a 3-3 game moving into the third inning.

With both teams ready to respond to each other’s rallies, it seemed like we were primed for a matchup that was going to be decided in the later innings. That was until the Lions put up a combined 10 runs in the third and fourth inning, giving themselves a 13-3 lead.

Playing a role in the rally was Josh Will who drove in two runs on a double, Colton Feller who drove in two runs on a single, and Jett Lundeen who drove in one run on a single. The Royals would get a run back in the top of the fifth, courtesy of an RBI single by Carson Anderson, but the Lions added one more run in the bottom of the inning, making the game go final at 14-4.

South Prairie was led by Lance Pitner, who went 2-for-3 with a double, triple, and an RBI, Carson Anderson who went 1-for-3 with an RBI, and Layne Korgel went 1-for-3 with an RBI.

For Bishop Ryan, Josh Will went 1-for-3 with a double, three RBIs, and a walk, Brady Feller went 2-for-2 with two RBIs and a walk, Drew Zwak went 1-for-3 with an RBI, and Teagan Coonrod went 2-for-3 with an RBI, as the driving forces behind the Lions’ big night.

Colton Feller played multiple roles for the Lions. He went 2-for-3 with two RBIs at the plate and was the starting pitcher as well. On the mound, he threw all five innings, giving up four runs (two earned) on four hits, three walks, and four strikeouts.

The Lions scored 14 runs on 13 hits with three errors on the night, while the Royals scored four runs on four hits with five errors. With this being a play in game for the Region VI tournament, the Royals’ season comes to an end after the loss.

With the win, the Lions will move on to play Surrey on Monday, May 23. First pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m. at Corbett Field.