According to Webster’s New World Dictionary, the word “dominate” means: to rule or control by superior power.

Used in a sentence:

Plains-Hot Springs senior pitcher Garth Parker ruled and controlled the Troy High School baseball team by superior power. He dominated the Trojans from start to finish last Thursday.

That domination included striking out 18 of the 23 batters he faced as the Savage Horsemen squared their season record at 5-5 with an 8-0 whitewash of the Trojans on their home field.

Parker, a Hot Springs student and multi-sport standout, yielded just two hits, both singles, in his seven-inning complete game. He walked no one.

That means he got all but three outs in the game via strikeouts. Along the way he overpowered three of the Troy batters via strike out three times each and struck out three more batters twice apiece.

One of the only base runners he allowed was a hit by pitch batter. He threw a total of 96 pitches as he completely stifled Troy’s hitters, In the first inning, Troy managed a ground out and had two batters go down on strikes as Parker was off and running.

The stunning performance comes on the heels of two scoreless games he pitched in relief over the past two weeks.

And, he was one for three at the plate, lashing a double in the top of the sixth, then scoring on an RBI single by teammate Jodi Page.

Neither team scored in the first two innings of the game. Plains-Hot Springs got on the scoreboard in the top of the third, the first of those runs coming via an error that allowed Matt Thurston to reach first base. He advanced to third on a wild pitch, then scored on a sacrifice fly to center by Aiden West. The Savage Horsemen tacked on another run when Beau Crabb scored on a single by Zander Czifro, making it 2-0 Plains-Hot Springs. Before the inning was over Czifro scored from third on a wild pitch and the Savage Horsemen held a 3-0 lead.

Plains added a single run in the top of the fifth when Crabb laced a single to center, scoring Matt Wyatt.

Parker opened the top of the sixth inning with his double, and scored on a single by Page that was accompanied by a Troy throwing error. Page, West and Wyatt all scored in the inning, giving Plains-Hot Springs an 8-0 lead on a day when Parker was almost unhittable on the mound.

Parker closed out his masterful performance by striking out the Troy side in the bottom of the seventh, with two of those strikeouts coming on dropped third strikes. Both of those runners were extinguished at first.

The Savage Horsemen outhit Troy 8-2 for the game, with Crabb turning in a 2-3 stint in the batter’s box, including a run driven in. West, who had one hit in four official trips to the plate, was credited with a pair of RBIs.

The Savage-Horsemen, who closed out their home season last Saturday with a 7-6 win over Troy, play at Florence-Carlton this Wednesday (May 10). A win against the Falcons would boost Plains’ seasonal record to 6-5 in this, their first year of varsity baseball.