ROLLA, Mo. – The Miners won both games in today's season opener doubleheader, taking down Winona State 11-1 and 6-2. Right Hander
Dylan Mollett (St. Louis, MO/Oakville) was the starting pitcher for game 1 and Left Hander
Ethan Morrow (Lenexa, KS/Shawnee Mission West) filled that duty in game 2.
Due to weather delays earlier in the week, it was determined that the first game would be 7 innings and the second game the regular 9 innings.
Game 1:
The Miners started off game one well in the first inning, with Mollett only facing three batters in the top of the inning and with the team scoring four runs in the bottom off RBIs from
Kenneth Sugi (North Vancouver, BC/Carson Graham Secondary),
Tyler Prince (Mexico, MO/Mexico),
Tommy Ruether (Washington, MO/Washington), and
Matt Souza (Escondido, CA/Christian). S&T continued to keep the bats rolling, as they would score at least one run in every inning except for the 5th. The Miners only went through four batters in the bottom of the second, but a double from
Jack Bell (Andover, KS/Andover Central) on the first at bat put him in scoring position, which he did two at bats later off a groundout to shortstop by
Garrett Weiner (Alton, IL/Marquette). In the bottom of the third, the Miners were up 5-1 when a double from
Nick Krodinger (DeSoto, MO/DeSoto) brought
Tommy Ruether (Washington, MO/Washington) all the way from first base to home plate to make the score 6-1.
The Warriors made a change at pitcher in the bottom of the fourth after having just had another fruitless at bat in the top of the inning. The new pitcher got into trouble right away, walking two miners, allowing a double, and throwing a wild pitch to load the bases with only one out. The next at bat, WSU's pitcher hit Prince to advance the base runners and bring
Sam Monroe (Moline, Ill./Moline) home to further the Miners lead to 7-1. The Warriors were able to get out of the rest of the inning unscathed despite the loaded bases, as the Miners left three players stranded.
In his last inning of the day, Mollett faced only three batters again as he completed his duties for the day. The Miners faced their first and only scoreless inning of the game in the bottom of the fifth. The top of the sixth inning brought Matt Kaiser in as relief for Mollett, who performed well, only facing four batters, and striking out the last at bat of the inning. The bottom of the sixth was another big one for the Miners, as they scored four, two of which came off a triple by Souza. Up 11-1, the Miners just needed a stop in the top of the 7th. They put in
Cody Hazzard (Mazon, IL/Yorkville Christian) to close out the game and he did just that while only facing four batters.
Game 2:
The Warriors claimed the first point of the game in the top of the first after a double and a single. Morrow finished off the rest of the inning thanks to a double play and a strikeout. The Miners found themselves in a good position early in the second, with bases loaded and no outs after a double, a single and a walk. RBIs by Sugi and Prince brought Bell and Monroe home to give the Miners a 2-1 lead heading into the second. The Warriors would tie the score after a double and a single of their own to start the inning gave them players in scoring position.
Bell had a big bottom of the second, aiding the Miners scoring efforts as they put up three points that inning. Bell had a single RBI, two stolen bases, and a run scored that inning as the Miners went up 5-2. Neither team would score in the next two innings, with only four players reaching base in that span. In the bottom of the fifth, a sacrifice fly to center field by Krodinger would bring Prince home to for the final score of game two as the Miners pulled ahead 6-2 and held on to win the game.
The Miners will face Winona State in another doubleheader tomorrow at 11 a.m. at the Ballpark at S&T.
