Dexter's McKuin one-hits Green Wave

Garret McKuin (right) delivers a pitch to a Malden Green Wave hitter during the Bearcats' 3-1 win Tuesday on the road. McKuin pitched a complete game one-hitter as Dexter improved to 13-4 on the season.

McKuin went seven innings and recorded seven strikeouts to lead the Bearcats to their 13th win of the season against four losses. The junior right-hander only faced four batters over the minimum, mixing up his fast ball and curve to keep the Green Wave off balance.

"We got down early there, but overall, we came out and we weren't swinging the bats very well again today and that's a point of concern for me," Dexter coach Brian Becker said. "But we eventually got going in the fifth and took the lead and Garrett (McKuin) did a good job of shutting their bats down from the first inning on.

"That was big for Garrett," Becker said when asked about McKuin going the distance. "He had a good start for us. He was kind of erratic at times, but I was pleased with his performance today."

Malden's Gregory entered the game against Dexter undefeated on the season, but slipped to 5-1 after the Bearcats scored twice in the fifth, then tacked on an insurance run in the sixth. Gregory allowed just five hits, but issued six walks to hurt his cause.

Malden scored an unearned run in the first when KcKuin got Matt Noe on strikes, but the throw got away from catcher David Hessling to allow the Malden second baseman to reach. With one out, a wild pitch moved Noe to second, then a ground out to the Dexter second baseman allowed him to take third, where he later scored on yet another wild pitch.

After that, McKuin and the Dexter defense settled in to keep the Green Wave in check until the Bearcats' mounted their late offense. Sean Merritt recorded the only hit off McKuin, a single, with two out in the fourth, but a strong throw from left fielder Ben Mills got Merritt trying to stretch the hit into a double.

Dexter scored in the fifth when Mills hit a one-out single, then Mason Noe singled to right where the ball was misplayed by Craig Jones and allowed Mills to score and Noe to take third. Caleb Miller followed with a deep sacrifice fly to right center to plate Noe with what would prove to be the winning run and a 2-1 lead.

Tyler Scott drove in Eric Windham with Dexter's third run in the sixth. Windham reach on an error, took second on a passed ball, then stole third to set up the RBI opportunity.

Malden is putting together a solid season under coach Tim Harmon. The Green Wave still support a 10-5 mark after the loss, and their sights are clearly on the upcoming districts in two weeks.

"We've got a pretty good season going," Malden's Harmon said. "So far we've won the games we should have won and against teams like Dexter, we've played them close but we really haven't beaten anybody we probably shouldn't have."

The game did help Harmon answer some questions about his team, especially Gregory.

"He's just a sophomore, 5-0 on the season, and I told him coming in he has pitched against some teams that haven't been strong offensively, and I wanted him to throw him against a team like a Dexter to see where he stood," Harmon continued. "And he showed me he's ready. I think he's our best."