ST. GEORGE – The Dixie Pilots started a stretch of five games in three days with a 12-5 win at home against Sevier, a team made up of players from Richfield and other Sevier County schools.
Tyson Fisher homered and had five RBIs and Hobbs Nyberg reached base five teams to lead the way as the Pilots handed Sevier its first American Legion South Region loss of the summer.
“That’s just Tyson Fisher, he comes out and hits the ball and does it time and time again,” said Dixie coach Kurt Ivie. “Hobbs Nyberg was amazing and we got (Kyler) Yates back. This is the first he’s pitched since the state tournament and he looked great.”
Ivie, managing the team for the absent Danny Ipson (family reunion), also got to insert a whole squad of younger players as well with Dixie jumping out to a 10-2 lead after just three innings.
“Oh, it was great to get those young guys in there, but it was also great to have most of our veterans here to lead the way,” Ivie said.
Dixie had 10 hits in the game, but the Pilots’ best friend was the free pass. Sevier pitchers, five of them, issued a combined total of 12 walks and hit batsmen. Nyberg, for example, had five plate appearances, but only two official at-bats. He singled those two times and walked the other three appearances. He ended up scoring three times and knocking home a pair of runs and played five different positions in the field.
“That’s the nice thing about having a guy like Hobbs – he can do it all,” Ivie said.
Nyberg, after the game, said he doesn’t mind moving around on defense.
“Whatever the coach needs,” he said. “I even played some catcher when I was younger, so who knows?”
Fisher’s homer was a three-run shot and came in the bottom of the second. With Dixie already up 4-0, Nyberg and Brendan Blanchard both drew walks. Fisher then bombed one deep over the left-field fence to make it 7-0.
Sevier got two back in the top of the third, but Fisher got two more RBIs in the bottom of the third and Reggie Graff knocked one home to make it 10-2. It was 10-4 in the fourth when Yates and Payden Harrah put the game away with RBIs to make it 12-4.
Yates had a pair of hits and he, Nyberg and Fisher all pitched an inning for Dixie, which improved to 5-4 in AL Southern Region play, a half-game behind the St. George Sentinels for fifth place. Sevier is 5-1, now a half-game behind Pleasant Grove for first place.
The standings could make a major shift this weekend as many of the teams head to the Helper-Price Tournament in eastern Utah. Dixie will play a doubleheader against the Helper Merchants (5-1) Friday night and then play Price (2-7) for a doubleheader Saturday. All four games are at the Helper Legion Park.
American Legion South Region Standings
Pleasant Grove 6-1
Sevier 5-1
Helper 5-1
Vernal 8-2
St. George 6-4
Dixie 5-4
Roosevelt 2-3
Price 2-7
Corner Canyon 0-16*
* – After starting the summer 0-2, Corner Canyon elected to fold its American Legion team and all scheduled games are now forfeits. Those forfeit wins have already been added to the other eight teams’ records.
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