Mahon off to 8-0 start at KC

Kaskaskia College's Logan Mahon could not have dreamed up a better first year as a Blue Devil.

The St. Elmo grad earned his eighth victory, against no defeats, in a 4-1 win over John A. Logan Junior College recently. Mahon, who worked five innings, allowing three earned runs. He fanned six hitters and walked four.

"I did not expect this," said Mahon. "I did not expect to be undefeated at this point. The last couple of outings, I noticed that hitters are coming after me earlier in the count. I am just focusing in this year and will worry about next year later. I want to be one of the team leaders next year."

Mahon has worked 61 2/3 innings in 12 games. He has held opposition to 14 earned runs on 48 hits for a 2.04 earned run average. He fanned 52 hitters and walked 22 hitters. He leads the team in victories and innings pitched, and is second in fanned batters.

"He is a little ahead of where we expected him to be," said Brad Tuttle, KC's head coach. "Next year, we expect him to be better. We have set him up with a summer collegiate league. It will benefit him as a pitcher and us as a team. The better that Logan becomes, the better we will be next year. This will make him stronger."

Parkland College's Spencer Patton, a South Central grad, improved to 9-2 with a 12-2 win over Lincoln Land Community College recently. Patton, who worked seven innings, allowed one earned run on seven hits. He fanned 10 hitters and walked two. With the win, Parkland improved to 35-14-1.

"I tried to relax from the beginning of the game, but I really relaxed after my teammates scored five runs in the bottom of the third," said Patton. "They answered the bell every time. It was a big game for us."

University of Kentucky pitcher Aaron Lovett earned his third victory of the year recently against Vanderbilt Univesity, 6-2. The Brownstown grad, who worked two innings, allowed one earned run on two hits. He walked two and fanned one. Lovett is 3-2 on the year. Kentucky is 34-14 overall and 11-13 Southeastern Conference.

Vandalia grad Rachel Bell, an Iowa State University distance runner, finished fifth in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the Kip Janvrin Open, which was held at Simpson College. Bell finished the race in 11 minutes, 28.88 seconds. Team scores were not kept.

Bryan Hobbie, a Vandalia grad and Greenville College baseball player, was 2-for-3 with a triple in Greenville's 7-3 win over Eureka College. Hobbie drove home three, scored once and stole one base. In a 13-4 win over Maryville University, Hobbie finished 2-for-4 with a double. Hobbie scored twice, drove home two and stole one base. Greenville is 20-7 overall and 14-10 in the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.

Vandalia grads Trevor Summers and Marcus Smalls, both Lake Land College players, each played extensively in the last two weeks.

Summers had his best game in a 9-2 loss to Wabash Valley College. Summers was 1-for-2 and drove home one run. Smalls was 1-for-2 in Lake Land's 21-9 loss to Rend Lake College. Smalls, who tripled, drove home two and scored one. Lake Land is 18-25.

Do you know of a spring athlete that should be included in this column? If he/she graduated from one of the high schools or is a resident of Fayette County, they are eligible to be included. I can be reached by e-mail (Dan62293@cs.com). When e-mailing, please put "The Leader-Union" in the subject line of the e-mail. I will need the name of the athlete, the former high school, the college/university they are attending as well as the sport they are playing.