The RedHawks dropped a doubleheader to the Trolls of Trinity Christian College by scores of 13-3 and 8-0. The Hawks dropped their record to 0-16 while the Trolls upped their record to 10-8 on the season.

In game one, the Trolls struck first in the bottom of the opening frame as Joseph Gura reached on an error by shortstop Ryan Halbe. Steve Pellack followed with a two-run home run off of sophomore pitcher Josh Santiago to give the Trolls a 2-0 lead.

The Hawks finally struck in the fifth inning. Chris Samano led off with a walk off of starting pitcher Dave Hamstra. Jamar Averyhart was then hit by a pitch. Second baseman Jon Cardenas laced a double into left-center field scoring Samano making the score 3-1. Corey Scott then grounded back to the pitcher to score Averyhart. Then Jeremy Ratajczyk came to the plate and ripped a single to score Cardenas and tie the game 3-3.

That's where the score stayed until the bottom of the 6th inning when the bats broke loose for Trinity Christian against the pitching combination of Josh Santiago and Ryan Halbe. Joseph Gura and Steve Pellack led off with walks. A double steal put runners at second and third with no outs in the inning. Matt Kemp then gave the Trolls the lead for good when he ripped a two-run single making the score 5-3. After four walks, a hit by pitch, and two run-scoring doubles, Matt Kemp came up for the second time in the game and ended the game with a two-run walk-off blast making the final score 13-3 in game one.

Five different RedHawks collected hits in the loss while Jon Cardenas, Corey Scott, and Jeremy Ratajczyk collected a run batted in apiece. The Hawks also committed three errors and left seven men on base. Josh Santiago took the loss.

In game two the Trolls took the lead and never looked back as Joe Gura started the scoring with a two-run home run in the first inning. That's where the score stayed until the fifth inning as the Trolls plated four runs on two singles, two walks, and a two-run triple by Ryan Kiesel to make the score 6-0. The Trolls added two more runs in the 6th inning to close out the scoring.

For the RedHawks, Jon Cardenas, Ryan Halbe, Chris Samano, and Alex Ramirez each collected a hit while workhorse Christian Jefferson worked five innings with two walks and six strikeouts in the loss.

After a day off on Thursday, the RedHawks hit the road for a four game series Friday and Saturday with Clark State Community College in a pair of doubleheaders. Friday's doubleheader starts at 4pm while Saturday's doubleheader begins at 11am.

Story by:

Brain Snow

isnetamerica@gmail.com 

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