Doniphan's Charles Wilson rounds the bases after a home run in the first inning Thursday at Poplar Bluff's Strenfel Memorial Field. (Alex Abate/DAR) [Click to enlarge]

The Mules rallied again Thursday afternoon against Doniphan but again, they came up just short.

Poplar Bluff was down 11-7 entering its half of the seventh and scored three runs but was unable to tie the game as it fell 11-10.

"I was telling the guys, as proud as I was of them yesterday with Sikeston and the way we battled in that game,

here we battled late, but it's not the same feeling," Poplar Bluff coach Stan Bullington said. "We gave a lot of things away early."

Taylor Boles led off the seventh with a triple to left center. After an out and a hit batter Boles scored on a wild pitch to cut the Dons' lead to 11-8. Later in the frame Brennan Moore drew a walk off of fresh Dons pitcher Logan Smith that brought in Josh Thompson to make it 11-9.

A pickoff attempt to first went wide allowing Bobby McIntosh to score and make it 11-10 but Smith struck out the next two hitters with the tying run at third base.

"I thought we were going to get away with (the game), they did give us a scare," Doniphan coach John-Marc Merriman said. "Coach Bullington always has his team ready to play."

Doniphan got off to an early lead in first. Tyler Harding doubled down the left field line before Charles Wilson hit a blast over the fence to make it 2-0.

The Dons added three more runs in the third inning playing small ball as they had five singles in the frame to make it 5-0.

The Mules countered with a singles attack of their own getting four singles to get within one run at 5-4.

The Dons built a 9-4 lead with four runs in the fifth and the Mules scored three in the sixth, making it 9-7. Two more runs by Doniphan in the seventh put them up four heading into the last half inning setting the table for the Mules' (7-9) near comeback.

GOLF: Cape Central edged Poplar Bluff 157-158 Thursday.

Zack Stricker led the Mules with a 2-over 35 while Trent Hillis shot a 38. Corey Poteet finished at 41 while Cameron West shot a 42, Kyle Brooks added a 45 and Josh Rathben added a 46.

Taylor Price led the Mules junior varsity team with a 45 while Tyler Schulse (47) Alex Riffle (51), Cameron Caldwell (52), Alex Johnson (54) and Logan Kennedy (55) also scored.

TENNIS: The Mules beat Dexter on Thursday afternoon 7-2. In singles action, Malay Bhatt beat Dusty Potter, 8-1 Davis Wilson beat Ryan Windham 8-1 Chris Drury beat Dylon Acevedo, 8-2 Anderson Gilberto beat Patrick Turpin 8-0, and Navneet Hundal beat Greg Ulm 8-2.

In doubles action, the team of Drury and Brown beat Potter and Windham 8-5. The team of Bhatt and Wilson beat Turpin and Acevedo, 8-1. The team of Asim Choudhary and Kyle West beat the team of Burge and Burge by the score of 8-5.