Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 LEWISTON, Ida. – The Montana State University Billings Baseball team got off to a rough start to the 2014 season as they lost their opening two games to #2 NAIA Lewis-Clark State, 5-4 and 20-6.

Game 1: MSUB 4 – LC-State 5

The Warriors opened the scoring in the bottom of the third inning, scoring two runs to make it 2-0.  They would add two more in the fifth inning and improve their advantage to 4-0.   

MSUB answered in the top of the sixth, when Brody Miller hit the first home run of the season making it 4-1 going into the bottom of the sixth. 

A quick three up and three down for LC-State, and MSUB would be back up.  After two more RBI's from Miller and a three run, three hit inning, MSUB tied it up 4-4 going into the seventh inning.

In the bottom of the seventh, the Warriors would score one more run on a Kevin Hawk double.  The one run would prove to be the difference as MSUB would get one more hit at the top of the ninth inning from Luke Reinschmidt blasted a double up the middle.  Reinschimdt would advance to third on a wild pitch, but MSUB could not push him through as the next two batters failed to get a hit. 

Miller finished with three hits on four at bats, three RBI's and one home run.  Reinschimdt also had three hits on four at bats. Bret Bitow and Trevor Nix also recorded hits for MSUB.

Matt Eames got the start on the mound for MSUB.  He pitched 4.0 innings, allowed nine hits, four runs and struck out two while facing 20 batters.  Jacob Mills came in relief of Eames, pitched 3.2 innings allowing just three hits, one run and struck out three Warriors.


Game 2: MSUB 6 – LC-State 20

Game two saw MSUB start out hot as they recorded four runs in the top of the second inning as Colter Sternhangen and Casey Merritt both singled with no outs and Merritt's pushed across the first run thus giving him his first colligate RBI.  They received a little help from Warrior Pitcher, Terik Gofinch who walked two Jackets and hit another.  He walked Reinschimdt with bases loading pushing across Steven DeYoung with one out.  The next batter was Miller who hit a single that scored two more runs. 

Beau Kerns came in relief of Gofinch and quickly got the next two Yellowjacket Batter to fly out and stop the early bleeding. 

Before it was said and done the four runs would be an afterthought as LCSC used 11 hits and six Yellowjacket errors to plate 20 runs between the second and seventh inning. 

MSUB would score two more runs, one in the 4rth as Miller drove across his sixth RBI of the day.  The last came in the ninth when Brad Birch hit a double down the left field line as Blake Loran came across to score. 

Drew Christina (0-1) received the start for the second game.  He pitch 2.2 innings allowing four hits and six runs.    

Miller led MSUB finishing the day going 5-8 while driving in six RIBs.  

"We saw a lot of good things from our team in game one," Head Coach Rob Bishop said.  Eames, Mills and Jordan Knoll pitched well and we played a clean game defensively.  We struggled from the mound and defensively in game two.  We will come out to compete tomorrow and I will look for a big improvement from our team."