ST. LOUIS, Mo. – Playing under sunshine and clear skies, the Missouri S&T baseball team was back on the turf at Weber Field Wednesday for the first time since 2019 to take on Maryville in the first of two matchups this season. The Miners (3-6) scored first and held a lead for most of the game, but the Saints (7-4) managed to plate a pair of runs late to tie the game and force extras before scoring the winning run the 10th for a 7-6 win.
S&T broke the seal to begin the game in the top of the first inning, when
Garrett Weiner (Alton, IL/Marquette) belted a fly ball to deep left center for a sacrifice fly that plated
Dakota Sill (Lansing, KS/Lansing) after he opened the game with a double. After an
Aaron Berkhoff (Colorado Springs, CO/Cheyenne Mountain) walked loaded the bases,
Brady Voss (Lake St. Louis, MO/Liberty) looked at four wide ones as he was issued a free pass to score
Tommy Ruether (Washington, MO/Washington) to make it 2-0 Miners.
Maryville answered right away in their half of the inning, as a leadoff hut by pitch was followed by two wild pitches and a groundout to cut the lead to 2-1 after just two batters. A single and two walks loaded the bases for the Saints before a two-out single tied things up at 2-2.
The Miners wasted little time regaining the lead in the second inning. Back-to-back single from
Jaden Courtois (Festus, MO/Jefferson) and Sill followed by a Ruther walk loaded the bases for
Andrew Branson (St. James, MO/St. James), who earned an EBI the hard way as he was hit by a pitch. Two batters later,
Braden Mahurin (Dixon, MO/Dixon) drove in another run on a fielder's choice to make it a two-run game again at 4-2.
The Saints scored a run in the bottom of the fifth on a wild pitch to make it a one-run contest, but S&T answered back in the top of the sixth on an RBI double from Sill to score Courtois. MU had a chance to take the lead in the bottom of the inning as they managed to load the bases with two outs, but
Chasen Anderson (Moscow Mills, MO/Troy Buchanan) took over on the mound and was able to record the final out of the inning to keep it a 5-3 game.
Both teams traded runs in the seventh, with S&T scoring on a Mahurin sac fly that saw
Doug Wood (Liberty, MO/Liberty North) cross home before Maryville collected an RBI single in the bottom half to make it 6-4.
Jacob Cook (Chicago, IL/Minooka Community) took over on the mound to work the eighth and got two quick outs, but MU managed to tie the game with three-straight hits to make it a 6-6 game.
With neither side finding much luck in the ninth to score the go-ahead run, the game headed to extra innings. The Miners went down in order in the top of the 10th, but the same couldn't be said for the Saints, as a pair of one-out singles put runners at the corners before a sacrifice fly to center field ended things as the winning run crossed to give MU a 7-6 win.
At the plate, Sill led the way with a 3-5 game that saw him score twice and drive in a run. Mahurin finished 1-4 with a pair of runs batted in while Courtois went 1-3 with two runs scored and a pair of stolen bases to his credit. Seven different players recorded a hit in the game and five drove in a run over the course of the afternoon.
David Kephart (Overland Park, KS/Blue Valley Northwest) (0-1) took the loss in relief as the final of six pitchers used in the game for S&T. Starter
Estin McBroom (Monett, MO/Monett) settled in after a rocky start in the first inning, as he went five innings and allowed three runs on four hits while striking out four and recording three shutout innings.
Mick Von Feldt (St. Charles, IA/Interstate 35) and Anderson also turned in scoreless relief appearances for S&T.
The Miners will be right back in action Thursday with a doubleheader against Southwest Baptist on the road Thursday starting at 2 P.M.
