CLAREMORE, Okla. – No. 15 Rogers State Baseball (25-3, 13-1 MIAA) rolled to a dominant 16-4 run-rule victory over Arkansas-Fort Smith (4-22, 3-14 MIAA) on Wednesday at the RCB Bank Sports Complex, overwhelming the Lions from start to finish.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Junior
Damon Anderson-Wolf (6-0) started game No. 28 for the Hillcats, his seventh start of the season. Anderson-Wolf saw 20 batters in 5.0 innings, only allowing four hits, zero earned runs and walking two batters while recording four strikeouts in the outing.
The Hillcats wasted no time setting the tone for Wednesday's game. Erupting offensively, Rogers State sent 10 batters to the plate and scored six runs on five singles, two walks and an error to outscore the Lions 6-1 in the opening frame.
Back-to-back home runs by
Jake Mitchell in the second and third innings only fueled the Cats' offensive surge. Accompanied by an RBI single by
Luis Fuentes in the second, the Hillcats had a dominant 12-2 lead over the Lions.
Following a scoreless fourth inning,
Andrew Ramirez reignited the offense with a double to left in the fifth. An error and an intentional walk for Mitchell loaded the bases, paving the way for a two-RBI single by
Gavin Gamino and an RBI single by
Trevor Spainhoward that extended the Hillcats' lead to a commanding 15-4 and all but sealed the Hillcats victory.
Michael Klein took the mound in the sixth and delivered a hitless inning, recording two groundouts and a flyout.
Christian Estep followed in the seventh, allowing one hit and stranding a runner to secure a 16-4 run-rule victory for the Hillcats.
INSIDE THE GAME
- Mitchell was a perfect 3-3, leading the Hillcats at the plate with 2 home runs, 5 RBI's and a single to become the second all-time leader in home runs with 22, passing alumni Cody Campbell and Ryan Littlejohn.
- Ramirez had another stellar performance at the plate on Wednesday, with a 3-4 outing recording two doubles, three runs, an RBI and a sacrifice fly.
- The victory marked the seventh run-rule win for the Hillcats in their last nine games.
- The Cats extended their win streak to 17, the most in the NCAA DII era, and only two away from the current Rogers State record of 19, set in 2011.
UP NEXT
The Hillcats will continue their homestand with game one of their three-game series against the Emporia State Hornets on March 27. First pitch is set for 2:00 p.m.
