Jimmies go 4-0: Baseball wins little, then big
The Jimmies have yet to go on one of their patented winning streaks this season. It could be coming soon, though. Jamestown College (18-11-1) won a close game and then a blowout on Tuesday, sweeping Dakota Wesleyan 5-4 and 12-5 at Jack Brown Stadium. They’ve now won three straight and four out of five heading into four DAC games this weekend against Mayville State.
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The Jimmies have yet to go on one of their patented winning streaks this season.
It could be coming soon, though.
Jamestown College (18-11-1) won a close game and then a blowout on Tuesday, sweeping Dakota Wesleyan 5-4 and 12-5 at Jack Brown Stadium.
They’ve now won three straight and four out of five heading into four DAC games this weekend against Mayville State.
“We played pretty well today,” said JC coach Tom Hager. “It was good to win a 1-run game. We’ve played in a lot of those this season and haven’t won enough of them, so to find a way to win that one was good for us.
“Overall, we did a lot of good things today. The key is to build on this and carry it over to Friday and Saturday and keep it rolling.”
JC 5, DWU 4
The Jimmies had to sweat out the win in Game 1.
Spencer Flaten’s 3-run home run in the bottom of the fourth inning gave the Jimmies a 5-1 lead.
Dakota Wesleyan chipped away and were down just 5-4 entering the seventh.
In their final at bat, the Tigers loaded the bases with nobody out against JC reliever Nick Smart.
But Smart didn’t crack. He struck out Michael Lukkason and Stephen Gunnell for the first two outs and then got Nick Tadlock to pop out weakly to first to end the game.
“That was a big-time job of pitching by Nick Smart,” Hager said. “He didn’t fold under the pressure and did what closers are supposed to do — finish the game.”
It was the second save of the season for Smart, who worked the last two innings.
Ben Watkins went the first five for the Jimmies on the mound, allowing solo home runs to Erik Nockleby and Jon Holsworth in the fourth and fifth innings.
“Ben’s last few outings have been much more consistent,” Hager said of the LaMoure product. “He gave us a quality start and a good chance to win the game.”
The Jimmies got on the board first.
Mitch Stevens doubled home Matt Achter in the bottom of the first for an early 1-0 lead. Later in the frame, Max Boe singled home Stevens to make it 2-0. Achter, the Jimmies’ leading hitter, later had to leave the game with a shoulder injury after slamming hard into the ground trying to make a catch in the outfield.
The Tigers outhit the Jimmies 10-6 in the game. The home run for Flaten was his team-leading seventh of the season.
JC 12, DWU 5
The Tigers (13-23) scored first in Game 2, but a big bottom of the third put the Jimmies in front for good.
Third baseman Nico Moreno had the big blow, delivering a 1-out, 3-run home run to stretch the JC lead out to 6-2.
Moreno, a junior from Glendale, Calif., has made a big impact for the Jimmies. He added a long solo shot in the fifth. Both home runs, his fourth and fifth of the season, easily clearing the left-field fence.
“He’s got some pop and he’s a guy that can run, too,” Hager said. “Early in the season we were hitting him in the 3-hole. We moved him down to the 5-hole and he’s really done a nice job and settled in there. He’s being very productive right now and that’s great to see.”
The Jimmies pounded out 11 hits. Moreno had three of them and finished with four RBIs. Shortstop Rudy Strnad went 2-for-3 and scored twice.
“We swung the bats well today. A lot of guys made contributions and we need that. Hopefully we can continue that on a consistent basis,” Hager said.
After a shaky start, Blake Stewart settled down on the mound and went four innings, allowing two runs on four hits. Kacy Gardiner was impressive in his two innings, getting four of his six outs by strikeouts.
Jamestown College 5, Dakota Wesleyan 4
Tigers 000 112 0 — 4 10 0
Jimmies 200 300 x — 5 6 1
Mickey Grant, Luke Bamberg (5) and Toby Kaplan. Ben Watkins, Zach Mendiola (6), Nick Smart (6) and Joe Perez. W—Watkins (3-1). L—Grant. Save—Smart (2). 2B—DWU, Nick Tadlock. JC, Mitch Stevens. HR—DWU, Erik Nockleby, Jon Holsworth. JC, Spencer Flaten (7).
Jamestown College 12, Dakota Wesleyan 5
Tigers 200 000 3 — 5 6 2
Jimmies 007 014 x — 12 11 3
Bryan Schyler, Tyler Johnson (3), Zac Custer (6) and Kaplan. Blake Stewart, Kacy Gardiner (5), Chris Combo (7) and Nathan Christiuk. W—Stewart (2-1). L—Schyler. 2B—Nick Tadlock, Erik Nockleby. JC, Mitch Stevens. HR—DWU, Stephen Gunnell. JC, Nico Moreno 2 (5).
Records: Jamestown College 18-11-1; Dakota Wesleyan 13-23.
Sun sports editor Dave Selvig can be reached at (701) 952-8460 or by e-mail at daves@jamestownsun.com
Tags: sports, jimmies, baseball
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