ROMEOVILLE, Ill. - The Miners dropped their first game in their series against Lewis today with a score of 8-3. They gave up 8 runs and 10 hits as Lewis went on to win their seventh straight.
After failing to get any runners on in the first, the Miners took the field in the bottom of the inning with starting pitcher
Dylan Mollett (St. Louis, MO/Oakville) on the mound. Mollett gave up a single to the second batters but got groundouts against the other three to end the inning in just 11 pitches.
Nick Krodinger (DeSoto, MO/DeSoto) led off with a single to start the second but would be put out on a double play next at bat before a groundout ended the half inning with the score still tied. A single and a double for the Flyers in the bottom of the second scored the first run of the day, but the Miners would prevent them from adding another run with a tag at the plate next at bat.
Neither team would score in the third or fourth, with each team's pitcher getting three strikeouts in that time. The top of the fifth brought a pitching change for Lewis, after which they only gave up a single in the inning as the Miners remained scoreless. In the bottom of the inning, a single and an error setup opportunities for the Flyers to score two off a double and another two off a homerun, giving them a 5-1 lead over S&T.
An uneventful sixth took the game into the seventh, where the Miners would find their first runs of the day, scoring 2 off a two run homer by
Tyler Prince (Mexico, MO/Mexico). The homerun tied Prince with
Matt Souza (Escondido, CA/Christian) for the most homeruns this season at six.
Matthew Kaiser (St. Louis, MO/Vianney) took over pitching in the bottom of the seventh, lasting only five at bats before being replaced by
Matt Ellingson (Lenexa, KS/Olathe Northwest) who would close out the inning with the score still 5-2 in Lewis' favor.
Another "three up/three out" inning for the Miners in the eighth resulted in them failing to get anyone on base.
Ben Belgrave (Cary, IL/Cary-Grove) came in to pitch in the bottom of the inning, getting two outs in the first eight pitches. We would be unable to close out the inning with the next batter though, giving up a walk followed by two homeruns as the Flyers added another three runs to the scoreboard. Down 8-2 in the top of the ninth, the Miners were able to score a run after two doubles led to Krodinger crossing home plate before the game ended on a groundout to shortstop.
Mollett incurred the loss, making his 2024 record 4-3. In his six innings he gave up 8 hits and 5 runs but was got 5 strikeouts in that time too. Krodinger had the best day at the plate by far, getting 3 hits in 4 at bats and scoring 2 runs.
The series in Romeoville continues with a doubleheader tomorrow at 12 p.m.
