JOPLIN - The long bus trip didn't appear to be a factor Tuesday for the Blair Oaks Falcons.
Powered by a nine-run first inning, the Blair Oaks baseball team cruised to a 15-3 win in five innings against the Lamar Tigers in the Class 3 sectional round.
The game, originally scheduled for Monday at Lamar, was moved to Joplin's turf field.
Lane Libbert highlighted the first inning with a grand slam, his first home run of the season, to double Blair Oaks' lead to 8-0.
In the next inning, Libbert added another home run, a two-run shot, to help put the Falcons ahead 13-0 through two innings.
Blair Oaks scored single runs in the third and fourth innings to end the game early by run-rule.
In addition to Libbert's homer in the first, David Dell had an RBI triple, while Parker Bax and Ian Nolph each had RBI singles.
Nolph hit a sacrifice fly in the second and Dell drove in another run with a single.
Dell went 3-for-4 with two triples, three RBI and two runs scored. Bax also had a three-hit game and had two RBI, while Nolan Hair finished with two hits, including a triple, and scored three runs.
Bax pitched a complete game for the Falcons. In five innings, he struck out five and allowed four walks - three in the first inning - and scattered three hits.
The Falcons escaped a bases-loaded jam in the top of the first with a double play.
Lamar (12-9) scored its three runs in the third inning.
Blair Oaks (20-11, ranked No. 9 in Class 3) will host Lawson (18-6) in the Class 3 quarterfinals at 5 p.m. today at the Falcon Athletic Complex.
The Falcons are seeking their first Final Four appearance since winning back-to-back state titles in 2006 and '07. This is their first 20-win season since 2016.
Lawson defeat second-ranked Summit Christian 7-6 in Tuesday's sectional contest. The game was suspended Monday with Summit Christian leading 1-0 in the fifth inning.