The Davis Junior Legion squad put on a baseball clinic on Thursday at the District 6 Tournament, and homestanding Bella Vista better have been paying attention.

That’s because the locals’ 13-0 victory means they will play for the tournament championship on Saturday at Bella Vista High School with their opponent — either Cordova, Sheldon or the hosts — having to beat them twice to win the title. Davis just needs one victory to grab the crown.

On Thursday, it was hard to figure out which phase of the game was Davis’ most dominant.

Was it the offense that scored in every inning, then opened things up with a six-run fifth?

Maybe an error-free defense that was paced by Patric Kreidler’s highlight-reel plays in center field?

Or starter Ben Eckels’ sparkling one-hit shutout that featured eight strikeouts and just three walks?

Davis head coach Bob Creely seemed to favor Eckels:

“He pitched a great game,” Creely said of the right-hander who was Davis High’s ace last spring as a junior. “He went the whole way and was just excellent.”

While Bella Vista struggled to get on base against Eckels, the locals had trouble staying on base as the offense was clicking on all cylinders.

“The guys seem to be putting it all together,” Creely said. “They’re moving people over, hitting behind the runners and getting timely hits. Right now we just have to keep rolling and get a win on Saturday.”

George Hatamiya (who also scored twice), Joe Murray, Chris Daunt and Eckels had two hits each. Eckels helped himself with a pair of RBIs, one coming on a double off the wall in the first inning. The other came after Chris Gnos’ RBI double, which was the big hit in the decisive sixth.

That inning featured four hit batters and some unhappiness from the Bella Vista dugout.

“We went into that inning just needing one run,” Creely said, noting that the tournament is being played with an eight-run mercy rule. “Then we just broke it open and they kind of fell apart.”

Other offensive contributers for Davis were John Ariola, Brett Bloomfield and Shane Norton, who each had a hit. Norton also knocked in a run.

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Davis’ Joe Murray throws to first for the last out of an inning during a recent Junior Legion District 6 Tournament game. On Thursday, Murray went 2-for-4 as the locals defeated host Bella Vista, 13-0. Fred Gladdis/Enterprise file photo

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