Photo by Nick Henthorn The Barnesville Shamrocks, pictured with the “Milk Pitcher” trophy after topping the Union Local Jets 17-2 on Tuesday. The two teams were also wearing special jerseys as part of a cancer research fundraising effort.

BELMONT — It was an outing with a lot of adornments Tuesday between the hosting Union Local Jets and visiting Barnesville Shamrocks.

In addition to being this year’s “Milk Pitcher” game where the team with bragging rights– and possession of the Milk Pitcher trophy– was on the line ’till next year in a longstanding tradition, it was also the start of something new, with both teams donning special jerseys in support of raising money for a good cause.

“Union Local wanted to do a game– maybe even make it into an annual thing– where we use a game to raise money for cancer research,” Barnesville head coach Kelley Hanlon said.

Barnesville piled up runs on the road Tuesday, topping Union Local 17-2 in five innings, and retained the Milk Pitcher trophy in a game where both teams were both competing and cooperating.

“We wanted to do something like this,” Union Local head coach Melissa Lahna said. “And Kelley suggested that we do it on a Milk Pitcher game, because we’d have a lot of people here, pass the hat, get some money for donations to those that are in-need off the field.”

The money will go towards a Barnesville fundraising program, “Cutting Class for the Cure,” an event where school is called off one day and a fundraising raffle is implemented in its stead.

“It benefits everybody in Belmont County,” Hanlon said.

When it came to the action on the field Tuesday, it was all Shamrocks. 19 hits paved the way to 17 runs in an offensive explosion.

“Our hitting was really good. I thought Peyton did a good job, she just got a little tired. We had another freshman come in and really do well too. But I think our hitting tonight was the thing that stood out the most.”

Chaela Smolira’s double to left field in the top of the second started the scoring, driving in two. Abigail Johnson and Kylee Powell also tallied RBI in the frame.

The bats heated up even more in the third, seven more runs coming across in the inning as 11 batters came up to the plate. Lilly Welch’s double to the right-center gap was the biggest swing of the inning, scoring two to make it 8-0 at the time.

Already clearing a double-digit lead, Smolira launched a two-run homer to dead center in the top of the fourth to increase the differential even more. The Shamrocks led 15-0 going into the bottom of the fourth.

“Our hitting was really good,” Hanlon said. “I thought [starting pitcher] Peyton [Loudin] did a good job, she just got a little tired. We had another freshman [Ella Betts] come in and really do well too. But I think our hitting tonight was the thing that stood out the most.”

Smolira finished 3-3 with five RBI. Teammates Powell (3-4, three RBI), Ellie Thompson (2-5, one RBI), Peyton Loudin (2-3, one RBI), Jayln Skinner (2-4) and Welch (2-4, two RBI) also had multi-hit games.

Union Local showed some fire in the bottom of the fourth, Kylie Stidd pounding a double to left field to score two runs, but Barnesville put up two more in the top of the fifth, much too big a deficit for the Jets to entertain a comeback.

In a game where the Shamrocks consistently dumped base hit after base hit into the shallow outfield grass, some missteps by the Jets defense and impressive pitching by the Shamrocks’ hurlers made for a fatal combination for the home team.

“They got more blooper singles than I’ve ever seen in my life,” Lahna said. “It was frustrating. Don’t get me wrong, we had eight errors, we didn’t play well and Barnesville was disciplined at the plate. You put those things together and you’re not going to come out on top too often. It’s tough, we’re on a six-game losing streak. We’ve got to find a way, because we’re better than what we’re getting right now.”