PUEBLO, Col. – The Montana State University Billings baseball (5-3) took the 2-1 lead in their four-game series against Colorado State University Pueblo. The Thunderwolves took game one of the day 4-0 but the Yellowjackets came out victorious with a 6-4 win in game two.
The double header proved to be a tale of two games, featuring a pitchers dual in game one, and another back-and-forth shootout in the second seven inning matchup. Despite the loss,
Jackson Betancourt put on a show in game one, going six complete innings while striking out 10 total batters. Following his fourth strikeout in the third inning, Betancourt surpassed the 150 career strikeouts milestone and sits 5
th all-time in the Yellowjacket record books.
Game two was fueled from offensive performances from
Ryan Jeffrey who went 3-4 with two RBI's, three triples, and one run,
Jack Nehler who also went 3-4 with two RBI's and a run, and
Parker Bleggi who tallied a pair of RBI's and one run. Although the Yellowjackets were able to post six runs in the game, the impressive performances came out of the bullpen.
Andrew White,
Hayden Mullins, and
Andy Evans combined for 3.2 innings with three strikeouts while allowing zero runs and just two hits. Mullins went on to earn the win while Evans picked up his third save of the season.
HEAR FROM WADDOUPS: "Betancourt was tough in game one and just had some bad luck with hits falling on us. Hats off to Pueblos Travis Farrell, he threw a great game. It just seemed like everything off our bats was right at someone."
GAME ONE: MSUB 0; CSUP 4
After no action in the top of the first for the Yellowjackets, senior pitcher
Jackson Betancourt took the mound for his second start of the season. Betancourt made quick work, retiring three straight hitters while striking out two. The Thunderwolves struck first in the bottom of the second inning, but Betancourt came back with a scoreless third. The San Diego native kept poring the strikeouts on, adding two in the second and two more in the third to bring his total to six in just three innings.
By this point in the game the 'Jackets struggled to apply any offensive pressure and Pueblo kept chipping away, adding one run in the fourth and one in the sixth. MSUB ended the game with five team hits, including two in the top of the seventh from
Zack Blaszak and Nehler but it was not enough, and the Thunderwolves went on to take the 4-0 victory to even the series 1-1. Despite allowing four runs, Betancourt ended his day with six complete innings with 10 strikeouts while allowing just two walks.
HEAR FROM WADDOUPS: "That was just a gritty fight from our guys in game two. Cy gave us a quality start which ultimately gave us a chance to win at the end. White, Mullins, and Evans were tough out of the bullpen, and all showed toughness against a good lineup. Proud of our team staying within our offensive approach and just finding ways to push across some runs."
GAME TWO: MSUB 6; CSUP 4
The second seven inning affair of the day saw more action than the pitchers dual in game one. The Yellowjackets got on the board early in the first inning when Jeffrey drove in Nehler on an RBI double to left field. After the Thunderwolves retook a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the first, Jeffrey tied up the ballgame on another RBI double to score
Kaden Kirshenbaum. More action continued in the fourth as Bleggi produced a go-ahead RBI single up the gut to score
Jason Wright, followed by an RBI single from Nehler to give the Yellowjackets the 4-2 advantage. This didn't last long as Pueblo quickly responded with two of their own and both squads headed into the fifth inning tied at four apiece.
Making his second start on the season was
Cy Miller who went 3.1 innings with a pair of strikeouts while allowing just three earned runs and was relieved in the bottom of the fourth by White. In the top of the sixth Nehler drove in his second RBI of the game, bringing home
Bodee Wright on a base hit to right field to take the one run lead. The Yellowjackets got some insurance in the top of the seventh after Bleggi scored Jeffrey on a sacrifice fly to help lead MSUB to a 6-4 victory. Following the fourth inning, White, Mullins, and Evans combined for 3.2 innings while holding the Thunderwolves scoreless. The trio also allowed just two hits and two walks while Mullins earned the win and Evans earned the save.
STATISTIC LEADERS
HITS: Jack Nehler (4);
Zack Blaszak (3);
Ryker Fortier (3);
Ryan Jeffrey (3)
RBI: Jack Nehler (2);
Ryan Jeffrey (2);
Parker Bleggi (2)
RUNS: Six Players Tied (1)
IP: Jackson Betancourt (6.0);
Cy Miller (3.1)
SO: Jackson Betancourt (10);
Andrew White (3)
W/S: Hayden Mullins (win);
Andy Evans (save)
THE BUZZ: Jackson Betancourt was named Intermountain Health Player of the Game in game one and
Ryan Jeffrey was named Intermountain Health Player of the Game for game two.
UP NEXT: The Montana State University Billings baseball team finishes out their four-game series against CSU Pueblo tomorrow at 12:00 PM for a single nine inning game. Live statistics for the matchup can be found
here, and the live stream link can be found
here.
