BILLINGS, Mont. — The Montana State University Billings baseball team mounted a late push but came up just short Saturday afternoon, falling 10-8 to Regis University in the series finale at Pirtz Field. Despite the setback, the Yellowjackets (6-5) secured the four-game set 3-1 and now turn their attention to a matchup with No. 12 Colorado Mesa.
MSUB trailed for much of the contest but chipped away down the stretch, scoring in six of the final seven innings and bringing the potential game winning run to the plate in the bottom of the ninth. The Yellowjackets finished with 15 hits and five extra-base knocks, including two home runs. Regis matched MSUB with 15 hits but did most of its damage in key bursts, scoring four runs in the third inning, three in the fourth and three more in the eighth while holding the Yellowjackets to one- and two-run frames throughout.
Ryker Fortier led the offensive effort, finishing a perfect 4-for-4 with two doubles, three RBI and two stolen bases.
Nate McDonald went 3-for-5 with a double, a home run and two runs scored while
Cole Ayala was 1-for-4 with a two-run homer.
Kaden Bertram pitched in a double, an RBI and two walks and
Keeton Bell went 1-for-4 with a double and an RBI.
River Smith added a 2-for-4 performance with a walk, while
Landon Carter,
Kyle Henington, and
Jason Wright each contributed a hit.
"It was great to see our offense come to life this entire weekend," said head coach
Derek Waddoups. "We continued to production one through nine and even off the bench. I'm proud of our team for getting the series win over a quality Regis team."
On the mound,
Andrew White made his second start of the season, pitching three innings and allowing four runs with a career high seven strikeouts.
Lance Schaaf was first out of the bullpen and was relieved by
Scott Klinker provided a quality outing, tossing three and a third innings while allowing just three runs with five strikeouts.
Hayden Mullins closed the final two innings, giving up no runs on two hits and striking out two.
"Overall our pitching staff was outstanding this series," Waddoups said. "We had great starts and a lot of quality relief innings. Game four got away from us in the middle innings, and offensively we left too many runners on base when we had opportunities."
Game Flow
Regis struck first with a four-run third inning. After loading the bases, the Rangers plated a run on a groundout before Ethan Wood delivered a two-run double to right center. A run-scoring single later in the frame made it 4-0. The visitors added three more in the fourth, using a sacrifice fly and a two-run double to stretch the lead to 7-1.
MSUB began to chip away in the bottom of the third when Fortier singled home McDonald, who had doubled to open the inning. The 'Jackets made a bigger push in the fourth as Bertram worked a leadoff walk before Ayala launched a two-run home run to left center, cutting the deficit to 7-3.
The Yellowjackets continued their comeback in the fifth. Fortier singled and later scored on a double down the left-field line by Bertram to make it 7-4.
In the sixth, McDonald ignited the crowd with a solo home run to left, and Henington followed later in the inning with a triple to right field. Fortier executed a sacrifice bunt to bring Henington home, trimming the margin to 7-6.
Regis answered in the eighth with three critical runs. After back-to-back singles, a run-scoring base hit pushed the lead to 8-6, and a two-run triple down the right-field line extended the advantage to 10-6.
MSUB refused to go quietly. In the bottom of the eighth, Bell doubled to left center and later scored on Fortier's second double of the game to make it 10-7. The 'Jackets threatened again in the ninth when
Jason Wright delivered a pinch-hit single and came around to score on Bell's sacrifice fly, pulling MSUB within 10-8. With the tying run aboard, Regis reliever Nathan Ling recorded the final out to secure the save.
STAT LEADERS
H: Ryker Fortier (4)
R: Nate McDonald (2)
RBI: Ryker Fortier (3)
IP: Scott Klinker (3.1)
SO: Andrew White (7)
THE BUZZ: Ryker Forter was named Intermountain Health Player of the Game after posting a perfect 4-4 performance with three RBI's, two doubles, two stolen bases, and one run.
UP NEXT: The Yellowjackets return to action February 19
th when they travel to Grand Junction, Colo., to open a four-game series against the #12 Colorado Mesa University Mavericks.
