Sawyer, Grundy Center baseball shuts down Royals (PHOTOS)

GRUNDY CENTER – There were some nerves for Brayden Sawyer prior to taking the mound on Saturday night.
 
Once the Grundy Center freshman got to work, it was time for Sawyer to be "the guy."
 
He held Colo-NESCO to one hit – nothing after the second inning – getting timely help from the defense behind him and the offense in the batter's box for a 3-0 Spartan victory at the George Wilhelm Sports Complex.
  
Grundy Center advances in the district baseball tournament to face sixth-ranked Don Bosco in a district semifinal on Tuesday in Hudson. The Dons defeated Grundy Center 10-0 last season to knock the Spartans out of last summer's postseason.
  
"It felt great to do this for the seniors," Sawyer said. "We've had a great season and the community had our backs, too."
  
Sawyer struck out nine Royals on Saturday and retired 18 consecutive batters after Jack McKinney's leadoff single in the second inning.
  
Along the way, Grundy Center's defense was error-free all night long, and the Spartans made plenty of nice heads-up plays to keep Colo-NESCO off the basepaths.
  
"The guys behind Brayden have all the confidence in him," Grundy Center coach Pat Brown Jr. said.
  
Sawyer added: "It gives me more confidence pitching when they make as many great plays as they did tonight."
 
 
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