By Nick Winstead
Battle Creek, Mich.—The Bombers were able to outlast the visiting Rochester Honkers and win their second game of their four game home stand, 3-1.
Marcellus Sneed (Madison College) had the start for the Bombers this evening and looked sharp from the get go, striking out two in the first.
“I felt good right away, I just stuck with what I know” said Sneed following the game. “Coach Triv helped me to improve my breaking ball.”
The Honkers would strike first, in the 6th inning, after Sneed loaded the bases and issued a walk with two outs to Jack Goihl which brought in LJ Brewster from third to score.
Sneed would be replaced by Andrew Mitchell (LSU) who got a quick out to end the bases loaded jam.
Sneed finished the night with 5.2 IP allowing just three hits, one run, which was unearned, while striking out six.
“Sneed had a great game, that was Northwoods League baseball” commented Coach Trivett in the locker room after the victory.
Mitchell pitched two plus shutout innings, striking out the heart of the Honkers order for a 1-2-3 8th inning.
“That young man is going to roll out of bed throwing 90” noted Coach Triv of Mitchell. “We are fixing some things mechanically to where he’ll be throwing strikes consistently.”
In the bottom of the seventh the Bombers bats came alive with the game tied at one after Brandon Van Horn’s (Dallas Baptist) leadoff double put him in position to be brought in on a Matt Kent throwing error. Henri Lartigue (Ole Miss) ripped a single down the first base line to start out the bottom of the seventh. After two quick outs Justin Stawychny (Louisiana-Monroe) came to the plate and would hit a fly ball that hung up in the humid Battle Creek air and did not land until it was on the other side of the left field fence.
“I knew I had hit it good, but I didn’t think that it had the distance. It just kept going and going” stated Stawychny.
The two run bomb put the Bombers up 3-1 going into the ninth where Zac Ryan (Georgia Tech) struck out the side in his first appearance with the team to earn the save.
The Bombers will look to sweep the Honkers tomorrow before they hit the road on a four game road trip. First pitch is at 7:05 at C.O. Brown Stadium.
Game Notes:
Marcellus Sneed: 5.2 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 4 BB, 6 K.
WP: Andrew Mitchell (1-1) 2.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 K
Justin Stawychny: 2-3, 1 HR (2), 2 RBI.