ROLLA, Mo. – Back in action once more at the Ballpark at S&T to open the final leg of a 14-game homestand, the Missouri S&T baseball team was back to Great Lakes Valley Conference action opposite Lewis Friday afternoon. The Flyers (7-10-1, 3-2) took advantage of some miscues by S&T and jumped out to an early lead and held the Miners (13-9, 2-3) in check at the plate to take game one of the weekend 13-3.
Following a scoreless opening frame, Lewis struck first and hung up four runs in the top of the second beginning on an error by the Miners on a fielder's choice that would have been the first out of the inning. A run scored on the play and was followed by three more on a pair of singles.
The Miners broke through for their first run of the game in the fourth when
Chase Burgess (Overland Park, KS/Blue Valley West) singled through the right side of the infield to plate
Andrew Branson (St. James, MO/St. James) to make it 5-1.
The Flyers answered with a run of their own in the top of the fifth, and after a scoreless sixth, scored five more runs in the seventh on a walk, wild pitch and a pair of singles to make it 10-1.
Dakota Sill (Lansing, KS/Lansing) and
Tommy Ruether (Washington, MO/Washington) reached on back-to-back singles to open the bottom of the inning to put runners at the corners for
Doug Wood (Liberty, MO/Liberty North) who drove in Sill on a sacrifice fly. Ruether later scored when a ball off the bat of
Braden Mahurin (Dixon, MO/Dixon) was fielded by the third baseman, who chose to chase Branson back to second where the tag was made for the final out, but not before Ruether crossed home to make it 10-3.
Lewis added three more runs in the ninth inning to make it 13-3 before the Miners left one on base in the bottom of the inning to close the game.
Dylan Mollett (St. Louis, MO/Oakville) (3-1) was the hard-luck loser, bouncing back from a rough second inning to work five frames but allowed five runs in the game with just one being earned.
Dylan Dunbar (West Plains, MO/West Plains) struck out one in his 1 2/3 innings of work while
Treyton Ruth (Rolla, MO/Rolla) also struck out one in two innings of relief before turning things over to Scott Heinrich to finish the ninth inning.
Ruether finished 2-4 at the plate in the game for S&T with a run while Sill went 1-2 with two walks and a run scored. Wood, Burgess and Mahurin all drove in a run in the game for the Miners.
The teams are scheduled for doubleheader action Saturday, with the first of two seven inning game starting at 12 P.M. Prior to game two, the Miners will recognize members of the 2011 and 2012 Great Lakes Valley Conference West Division champion and NCAA Tournament teams in a pre-game ceremony to celebrate the 10th anniversary of those season.
