FHSU Athletics
HAYS, Kan. - The Fort Hays State baseball team dropped a pair of games Saturday against Colorado School of Mines, losing 21-7 in the opener before falling 11-8 in the nightcap. The Tigers are now 2-7 overall, while the Orediggers improve to 2-8 on the year.
Cooper Howell, Antonio Avila and Garretson Cook all recorded a pair of multi-hit games on the day, while Erick Ordonez hit home runs in each matchup.
The teams will wrap up the series Sunday beginning at noon at Larks Park.
Game 1: Colorado School of Mines 21, Fort Hays State 7
The Orediggers never trailed in the opening game of the series, scoring three runs on two hits in the first. Mines went on to score in six more frames, including putting up 10 runs in the top of the ninth.
The Tigers slowly chipped away, scoring in six different innings. However, the home team managed to score more than one run in just one frame, while the visitors did so four times.
Tiger outfielders combined for four outfield assists in the game, including three Orediggers gunned down at the plate.
Avila was 4-for-5 at the plate with two runs and two doubles, while Cook, Howell and Ordonez all posted two-hit games. Brandon Chavez (1-1) took the loss after allowing eight runs (six earned) on 12 hits over 3.2 innings of work. Luke Berry came on to strike out six batters over 4.2 innings of work, giving up five runs on six hits. Jaxon Schleper retired both batters he faced in his first appearance inside Larks Park, striking out one.
Game 2: Colorado School of Mines 11, Fort Hays State 8
Mines struck first again in game two, pushing across two runs in the top of the second. But Tiger starter Brett Jacobs settled in after that, retiring nine straight batters during the second time through the order to give the offense a chance to respond.
It did just that in the third when Howell, Avila and Cook all reached via bunt singles. Bret Deegan kept things moving with a sacrifice fly before Avila scored on a wild pitch to tie the game. Ordonez followed with his second home run of the day, giving FHSU its first lead at 4-2.
Back-to-back RBI doubles from Howell and Avila made it 6-2 in the bottom of the fourth before a Cook RBI double stretched the lead to five in the home half of the sixth.
After Jacobs worked around lone baserunners in the fifth, sixth and seventh innings, Sean Amarante led off the bottom of the seventh with a double into the left-field corner. Tony Moore followed with an RBI single back up the middle, pushing the Tiger lead to 8-2.
Things unraveled in the eighth when Mines scored nine runs on seven hits, three walks and two errors, taking an 11-8 lead. The Tigers had runners in scoring position in each of the next two innings, including getting the tying run to the plate in the ninth, but the Orediggers induced one final pop up to end the game.
Howell led the way with three hits, with Avila, Cook, Amarante and Moore all contributing two hits each. Jacobs struck out four in seven-plus innings of work, giving up six runs (four earned) on eight hits and just one walk. Burke Sharpsteen took the loss after allowing three runs in 0.1 inning of work, while Deegan switched from designated hitter to pitcher for the final 1.2 innings of relief, allowing two runs on four hits while striking out a pair.