Maybe Free State High’s baseball team wanted to save some runs for later, just in case it’s playing in Kansas University’s Hoglund Ballpark during next month’s Class 6A state baseball tournament.

Or perhaps the Firebirds just lost a little focus after an eight-run second inning against Springfield, Mo., Hillcrest on Saturday morning.

Whatever the reason, the Firebirds finally were forced to play a full seven innings in the River City Baseball Festival.

It didn’t matter much. Free State still stomped Hillcrest, 14-6, thanks to a third straight sizzling day at the plate.

“I don’t think we really got complacent. We might have lacked a little focus after we got off to the big lead,” said Free State’s Scott Heitshusen, who scored two runs and drove in two. “We kind of just took our foot off their throats, but it was still a heck of a weekend.”

Indeed. While the Firebirds’ bats exploded for 42 runs off 37 hits in three games, Free State’s pitchers might have been even more dominant.

For the third straight day, a FSHS pitcher had a no-hitter through four innings.

However, Heitshusen was roughed up for three runs in the fourth, and reliever Nick Ayre also gave up three runs over three innings.

Free State had only give up one run and a lone hit through 14 innings of the Festival.

“Our pitchers have just been able to pitch with so much confidence because of how hot our bats have been,” Heitshusen said.

Free State High infielder Matt Ertmer, right, tries to run down a Springfield, Mo., Hillcrest runner. The Firebirds won, 14-6, Saturday at Hoglund Ballpark.

Free State coach Mike Hill said he couldn’t have asked for much more from his 11-2 team this weekend.

“No rain and three wins not a bad weekend,” said a smiling Hill, who breathed a sigh of relief that the 31-game, 26-team, three-day extravaganza went off without a hitch.

So, too, did the Firebirds’ weekend, something Hill said he hoped to look back on as a monumental moment for his team if it’s lucky enough to make it back to Hoglund for the state tournament.

“Our pitching has always been the backbone. But we thought once we complimented that with our hitting in the fashion that we know we could hit, then we would be a pretty good team,” he said. “This weekend we just came out and hooked it up.”

No inning was bigger than Free State’s second against the Hornets.

Free State batted around, and Heitshusen’s courtesy runner, Hunter Scheib, scored twice.

Ayre had the biggest highlight when he roped a triple to right-center, but Brett Lisher’s bomb off the outfield fence also was a blast.

In fact, about the only thing that could have gone wrong for Free State was when Lisher took off running on a hit-and-run and was almost laced by teammate Jake Hoover’s line drive right at him. But even then Free State got the run home.

“This weekend everyone took the challenge to come out here and play as if this was the state tournament,” said Ayre, who was 2-for-2 with two runs, a double and a triple. “We came out and creamed the ball, and I think proved to ourselves that when we play at this level we can be a team that can get back here for state.”