WAHPETON, N.D. (NewsDakota.com) – In the first two innings the Valley City Royals (6-1) posted 12 runs on 12 hits and sent 20 batters to the plate against Wahpeton.

It was plenty of support as Valley City cruised to an 18-6 win in five innings.

The top of the lineup ignited the barrage. Avery Bennefeld, Grady Karges and Jacob Johnson opened the games with three consecutive doubles and all reached safely in their first two plate appearances. The waterfall of runs forced Wahpeton starter Isaac Getz out of the game in the 2nd inning.

The icing on the cake for the top third of the lineup was when Bennefeld blasted a 3-run home run to make the game a 12-3 Valley City advantage. Bennefeld’s scintillating evening ended with three hits, a triple shy of the cycle, four runs scored and three more driven in.

A third burst of run support came in the 5th inning when Valley City sent ten batters to the plate and plated six runs. The rally was highlighted by a pair of two-run singles from Karges and Johnson. It put Valley City up 18-3 before the final half-inning.

Valley City starting pitcher Alex Thornton didn’t require perfection to record the win Monday night, but he did plenty to earn it. Thornton gave up three runs in the first inning, two earned, and just one run in the 5th inning before being pulled. He dealt with traffic in the middle innings allowing six base runners on two singles and four walks, but worked around trouble until the 5th inning. He was pulled after a lead off walk and falling behind 2-0 to the 2nd batter, but it was a fine outing and more than enough to notch the victory.

The Royals improved to 6-1 on the year and return home to play the Fargo Bombers Tuesday evening at 5:15. Coverage can be heard on KOVC radio and online at newsdakota.com