Staff photo by Mike Buhler Dunklin County's Dustin Hunter (second from left, partially hidden) is congratulated by teammates Aaron Booker (5), Heath Horvath (16), Ben Smith (16) and Matt Fouts after Hunter hit a walkoff grand slam to end the second game of Sunday's Senior American Legion doubleheader against Blytheville, Ark. at Senath. [Click to enlarge]

SENATH, Mo. -- Facing a big deficit in the sixth inning and with their manager not in the dugout, things looked bleak for the Dunklin County Post 303 Dodgers in the opening game of their doubleheader against Blytheville on Sunday afternoon.

That bleakness did not last long, as Post 303 rallied to take an 11-10 win over the Casons in the opener, then rolled to a 13-2 win in the nightcap -- the Dodgers' 16th win in the last 18 games.

"We've really come around and played good baseball lately," Dunklin County manager Jamie Johnson said.

In the opener, the Dodgers trailed 9-3 in the bottom of the sixth inning when they came alive. Heath Horvath's two-run double made it a 9-5 game before Shane Branum later added a two-run single to make it a one-run contest.

Post 303 ended the inning with a 10-9 lead before the Casons scored a run in the top of the seventh inning to re-tie the game.

However, the Dodgers (19-8) answered right back in the bottom of the seventh, loading the bases for Aaron Booker, who drew a walk to drive in the winning run and cap the comeback.

"It's a huge win for those kids to be down that much and come back and win," said Johnson. "It showed a lot of heart."

Post 303 managed to win the opener despite Johnson missing the second half of the contest after being ejected for arguing with the umpire earlier in the game.

"The other coaches did a great job of keeping those kids looking up in the ballgame and believing they had a chance to win the ballgame," said Johnson. "Those guys did well."

Ben Smith had a big game in the opener, going 4-for-4 with two RBIs and pitching 2 2/3 innings of relief. Branum added a pair of hits and drove in two runs, while Horvath was 2-for-5 with three RBIs and also picked up the win in relief.

"We had big contributions from Ben after (he was) gone for a week," Johnson said. "We had a lot of guys step up and play well and haven't missed a beat. I think that's important."

In the second game, the Dodgers continued their strong play at the plate and on the mound to roll to the sweep.

Making his first start on the mound since returning from a dislocated finger, Sloan Richardson allowed just two hits, no walks and no earned runs in while striking out six in five innings of work for the complete-game win.

"To get him back in the rotation is such a big plus for our club," said Johnson. "We didn't know if we would have him the rest of the year with that finger."

Meanwhile, the Post 303 offense was dominating at the plate as well, scoring a total of 11 runs in the fourth and fifth innings.

Dustin Hunter had a big game, hitting a two-run homer in the bottom of the third inning to open the scoring, then ending the game with a walkoff grand slam in the bottom of the fifth to enforce the 10-run rule.

"He just had a great day at the plate," Johnson said. "After not having such a great game (pitching) in the opener, for him to turn it around is huge for Dustin."

Branum and Ben Smith each had a pair of hits in the nightcap, while Smith and Horvath each had a pair of RBIs.

"Up and down the lineup, everybody's contributing," said Johnson. "That's what it takes to win a lot of the baseball games (on) our schedule."

The Dodgers will try to improve to 4-0 in District XIV play tonight when they travel to Sikeston for a 6 p.m. doubleheader.

"We're just playing good baseball," Johnson said. "The kids are starting to gel a little bit and they're having a lot of fun. Winning's fun."

Notes: Post 303 begins play in the Paducah, Ky. tournament Thursday morning, taking on Mayfield at 11 a.m. before facing Owensboro at 1 p.m. Dunklin County will take on Ballwin Friday at 5 p.m. at Brooks Stadium to conclude pool play. ... In junior legion play Monday night, the Dunklin County Redbirds took a doubleheader from Sikeston Unit 114, winning the opener 7-3 and taking a 7-0 win in the nightcap. The Redbirds are 26-8 on the season and 4-1 in District XIV play and kick off a six-game homestand tonight against district foe Cape Girardeau at Indian Park.