SOFTBALL: Relics take care of Makanda, fall to Falcons
</element><element id="paragraph-1" type="body"><![CDATA[Following a 16-0 regular season in the Southern Illinois Fastpitch League, the Pinckneyville Falcons took the first step towards claiming the post-season tournament championship on Monday night, knocking off Makanda 8-1 in five innings to remain unbeaten in the SIFL.
Eric Saunders (3-4) and Lyle Winter (2-3, HR) each drove in three runs to lead the Falcons' offense. Brandon Hardin (3-3), Ricky Kasban (1-3, HR) and Hayden Hicks (1-1) also had hits.
Brent Fisher (1-3) and Sean Patrick (1-2) had hits for the Relics.
Bryant Hale threw three innings and allowed two hits while striking out four batters to pick up the victory for the Falcons. Winter relieved for the final two frames allowing no hits and fanning two. Brian Kellerman was the losing pitcher for the Relics.
Earlier in the evening, the Relics knocked off Makanda in short-game fashion behind winning pitcher Mike O'Rear to advance into the second round of the tournament.
The Relics will now have to face Makanda again on Thursday at 7:15 p.m. to stay alive. The Falcons, meanwhile, await the winner of Tuesday night's game between Pete's Blues and the Scheller Dirtbags.
The Bags and Pete's face off at 7:15 p.m. with the winner meeting the SIFL regular season champion Falcons at 8:45 p.m. The loser takes on the winner of the Makanda-Relics rematch on Thursday.
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