Newman Sports
David Rung, Sports Information Director
ODESSA, Texas – Locked into a pair of tight games for the second straight day, the Newman baseball went into extra innings for the third time this weekend and split a nonconference doubleheader against Colorado Mines Saturday afternoon.
The Jets (12-15) used another great pitching performance and early offense to grab a 4-2 win in the opener, and climbed back to tie it up and go into extras before falling 3-2 in the finale against the Orediggers (14-9).
Picking up a third straight quality start out of its pitching staff in the first game, the Jets saw Bradley Altdoerffer get through the first six innings allowing seven hits and two walks, but just two runs and only one of them earned.
In return, Newman’s offense got to work early. In the bottom of the first, Channing Williams and Brian Canfield reached base on a single and a double, respectively, and Nick Griffin and Aaron Mack repeated the sequence to plate a pair of runs. Four more hits in the bottom of the second produced the same result, this time with Williams and Canfield providing two-out RBIs.
Altdoerffer breezed through the first three innings, and the Orediggers only scored with solo, two-out runs in the fourth and fifth. Still a two-run game late, the senior put up a 1-2-3 inning in the sixth, and after a leadoff single in the seventh, Matt Riney came in to pick up the last three outs and record his second save of the weekend.
After giving up a pair of runs in the second inning of Game 2, starter Trey Tucker settled in nicely, breezing through the next three innings to keep the Jets in it. Jacob Hamerle doubled to start the third, and scored on Williams’ groundout to cut the lead in half.
Garrett Hammond entered for Tucker in the sixth, retiring three straight to strand a runner. In the bottom of the frame, Mack drew a leadoff walk, moved to third on a pair of groundouts, and came home to tie it on a balk, but Mines went ahead again in the eighth and held on to narrowly keep the Jets from a perfect weekend.
Canfield closed a solid weekend by going 4-for-6 at the plate Saturday, while Hamerle added three hits on the day.
Newman finishes a 10-game stretch away from home with a nonconference game at Northwestern Oklahoma State Tuesday evening.