JOSEPH Senior right-hander J.R. Masters pitched 23 strikeouts in only 10 innings for his high school baseball team, and hit two home runs to help the Jo-Hi Eagles outscore three opponents last week by a combined 41-27, but they managed only one win.

Masters clobbered his first homer May 3 in Wallowa, where the Eagles wound up losing by a score of 9-7. It had no impact on their standing in the league. 

Three days later at Adrian, Masters homered again in the first game of a doubleheader, as Joseph scored 18 runs in the fifth inning, on the way to a 28-11 victory. Masters came back to pitch a masterpiece in the second game, as it stretched into extra innings. He threw 22 strikeouts until the ninth, when Adrian broke a tie and sent Joseph home with a 7-6 loss.

The Eagles remained in third place, their record against league rivals even at 4-4. Their overall mark fell to 8-9.

In addition to Masters pitching marathon at Adrian, the right-hander had pitched an inning in the first game at Wallowa, with a strikeout. He was by far the pitching staffs workhorse. Junior Trevor McWaters threw 6.1 innings, with eight strikeouts. Senior Trent Martin threw three strikeouts in just over an inning, and senior Ian Baynes had a strikeout.

Meanwhile, Masters crossed home plate seven times. Martin, McWaters and senior Forrest Watson each scored six runs. Baynes added five runs, sophomore Jordan Wulff-Castilleja contributed four, sophomore Cody Duquette had four, freshman David Lewis had two, and freshman Blair Beaudoin chipped in another.

The batting lineup supplied big hits. While Masters hit two home runs and a double, Baynes pounded a homer, a triple, and two doubles. McWaters doubled four times, while Martin and Wulff-Castilleja each doubled twice. The Eagles also took advantage of extra-base hits from Beaudoin, Lewis, and freshman Max Greenway.

Next, Joseph will play May 13 at Union.