PUEBLO, Colo. (March 19, 2021) – The Colorado State University Pueblo baseball team opened a Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference series with Colorado School of Mines with an 11-10 victory, Friday at Rawlings Field.
The game was in Pueblo after the site was switched from Golden, Colorado due to last weekend's storm that dropped more than two feet of snow in the Denver metro area.
The ThunderWolves (4-9, 2-7 RMAC) used an eight-run second inning to build a big lead and held off a ninth inning push from the Orediggers (0-9, 0-9 RMAC) to secure the league win.
Batting second and in the designated hitter spot,
Ty Lewis (Jr., INF, Pleasant Grove, Utah) went 3-for-6 with five RBI. He recorded a triple and added a run scored.
CSU Pueblo totaled a season-high 17 hits in the win, while Mines had 10.
Postgame Quote
"I thought I was seeing the ball well today and the team put me in a really good position to drive in those runs," Lewis said. "It's just been a process throughout the week at practice to get runners on and get them in and it really showed in that second inning. We just have to keep going and keep pushing. We have to keep putting a barrel on the baseball and good things will happen."
Player Performances
Kodee Martin (Sr., INF, Platte City, Mo.) led off and went 3-for-5 with three runs scored. He posted a double and drew a walk.
Cather
Daniel Abiles (Sr., Chandler, Ariz.) posted a double and a home run, as he went 2-for-4 with two runs scored and a walk.
Junior
Aiden Welch (INF, Seattle, Wash.) also went 2-for-4 and scored a run.
Trey Vasquez (Jr., Greeley, Colo.) went 2-for-4 and scored a run.
Redshirt-sophomore
Jake Lombardelli (RHP, Windsor, Colo.) started and threw 3.1 innings. He allowed one earned run on two hits and fanned four batters.
Right-hander
Jeron Petterson (R-Jr., Brush, Colo.) was credited with the win after pitching 1.1 innings and allowing one unearned run on two hits
Game Summery
The ThunderWolves broke open the contest with an eight-run second inning to take the 8-0 lead. The inning featured eight runs on seven hits and two Mines errors.
Abiles led off the inning with a homerun to left field. With one out,
Mike Gonzalez (Jr., OF, Los Angeles, Calif.) and
Reggie Williams (So., 1B, Castle Rock, Colo.) produced hits and both would score with some help from Mines, as a wild pitch and a pair of errors guided them around the bases.
K. Martin singled to right, then Lewis' triple scored two runners and the Pack led 5-0. Lewis would score on a sacrifice bunt by
Adrian Martinez (Sr., OF, Tucson, Ariz.).
With two outs, Abiles doubled down the left field line in his second at bat of the inning to plate Welch, who walked, then Abiles scored on a double down the right field line by Gonzalez.
Mines got one back in he bottom half, but a Lewis single to left scored
Marco Martin (Fr., OF, Excelsior Springs, Mo.) and K. Martin in the top of the third to put the Pack up 10-1. Both Martins reached on hits.
The Orediggers scored on a single run in the fifth, which was the only run in the middle innings.
CSU Pueblo scored one in the eighth, which proved to be the winning tally. K. Martin led off the frame with a walk and then stole second to put himself in scoring position. Lewis delivered a single to left to plate the final run for the ThunderWolves.
Mines scored eight in the bottom of the ninth to make things interesting, as the Pack were able to secure the final out and win by one, 11-10.
Next Up
The ThunderWolves and Orediggers continue the series Saturday with a doubleheader at Rawlings Field beginning at 12 p.m.
-- PACK --
