BUNZ TOSSES 2-HIT SHUTOUT; DRAGONS SETTLE FOR SPLIT
Hutchinson CC Sports Information
PRATT – Freshman Jake Bunz twirled his first career shutout to get the Hutchinson Community College baseball team's series opener with the Pratt Beavers off to a great start on Friday.
Blue Dragon pitchers weren't able to hold the Beavers down in Game two as Pratt rallied for five runs in the bottom of the eighth to upset the first-place Blue Dragons in Game 2.
Bunz and Hutchinson needed only five innings to complete an 11-0 victory in the opener at Stanion Field. Pratt came back to win the second game 11-10 to split the first two games of the series.
The Blue Dragons are now 25-15 and 11-7 in the Jayhawk West. The Dragons are now tied with Colby for first place in the Jayhawk by percentage points over Butler. Pratt is 18-22 overall and 5-17 in the Jayhawk West. Games 3 and 4 will be played on Sunday at 1 and 3 p.m. at Hobart-Detter Field.
GAME 1 RECAP
Bunz improved to 7-1 for the season with his first career complete game and first full shutout. He was part of a combined shutout last week against the Sterling JV.
Bunz struck out a season-high 10 over his five innings of work, needing 82 pitches to complete his gem.
Elerie Rivera's one-out double in the third inning and Brendan Tauber's fifth-inning single were the only hits surrendered by Bunz, who didn't walk a batter. He also had to work around three Blue Dragon defensive errors.
Logan Sartori went 3 for 4 with a three-run home run and three runs scored to lead Hutchinson's nine-hit attack. Sartori's eight home run of the season came in the third inning and it gave Hutchinson an 8-0 lead.
The Blue Dragons had a fast start with a three-run first inning. Will Reetz scored on a passed ball. Riley Metzger singled in Sartori and Max McGuire reached on a catcher's interference with the bases loaded to make it 3-0.
Metzger and Zion Bowlin finished with two hits each. Dylan Nedved and Zach Baxley drove in two runs each.
GAME 2 RECAP
The second game was a different story as Pratt jumped out to a 3-0 lead after one inning and rallied from a four-run deficit with five runs in the bottom of the eighth.
Blue Dragon pitchers Miguel Reyes, Ryan Summers and Cade Fenton combined to surrender 11 hits, 11 runs, four walks and two home runs in the loss. Fenton (0-1) was strapped with the loss.
Hutchinson trailed 4-0 after three innings before the offense got going. Baxley hit a two-run homer in the fourth to cut the Dragon deficit in half. Nedved hit a solo homer in the top of the sixth to cut the Pratt lead to 5-3.
The Blue Dragons tied the game at 5-all on Sartori's two-run double in the top of the seventh. Hutch then took an 8-5 lead when Baxley was hit with a pitch with the bases loaded and Bowlin followed that with a two-run single..
Pratt scored one run in the bottom of the seventh, but solo home runs by Reetz and Zane Schmidt in the top of the eighth gave the Blue Dragons a 10-6 lead.
The first four Pratt batters of the eighth reached on a single, hit by pitch and back-to-back walks to cut the Dragon lead to 10-7. Landon Hulet singled in two runs to make it 10-9 and Jack Partington followed with a two-run single to give Pratt an 11-10 lead after eight innings.
Hutch got a two-out Bowlin walk in the ninth, but nothing else.
No Blue Dragon hitter had more than one hit, but 8 of 9 starters had hits.
The Blue Dragons had four home runs in the game from Nedved, Reetz, Baxley and Schmidt. Sartori and Christopher Noble both doubled. Baxley had three RBIs and Bowlin drove in two.