LC backs three-hitter by Hamann with five HRs in 15-1 triumph
Bert Sahlberg, LCSC
LEWISTON, Idaho – Right-hander Kevin Hamann enjoyed another strong outing on the mound and was backed by five home runs as the No. 2-ranked Lewis-Clark State College baseball team thumped Simpson 15-1 in an NAIA West contest at Harris Field on Friday.
The Warriors, 17-2 overall and 8-2 in league play, pounded out 17 hits while Hamman finished with a three-hitter in the contest, which was stopped in the seventh inning because of the 10-run rule.
Simpson, a faith-based university located in Redding, Calif., fell to 2-21 overall and 2-7 in league play.
Hamman improved to 3-1 on the season as he allowed three singles and two walks to go along with five strikeouts. It marked the fifth time in sixth starts this season that the 6-foot-4 junior pitched at least four innings and did not allow more than one earned run.
“Overall I’m pleased with myself but I know I missed a couple of pitches,” said Hamman, who allowed only one hit through five innings before he gave up the run in the sixth. “I thought we played well. We made a couple of mental mistakes but overall it was a good team effort.”
Hamman’s performance brought the team’s earned run average down to 2.78. The Warriors staff also has 163 strikeouts in 158 innings pitched with just 50 walks.
“This year the pitching staff has been doing really good,” Hamman said. “Everyone is settling into their roles and knows what they need to do.”
The Warrior bats certainly knew what to do as well on Friday with the long ball. Entering the game, LCSC had hit 12 home runs on the season, but the total jumped to 17 after the game. Three came during the Warriors’ six-run fifth inning, which is two shy of a school record for homers in an inning.
J.J. Robinson hit his team-leading fourth home run, while Jacob Zanon hit his third and finished 4-for-5 with two RBI and two runs scored. Cabe Reiten and Gunnar Buhner both hit their second homers. Buhner went 2-for-4 with four RBI and three runs scored, while Reiten went 3-for-3 with three RBI and three runs scored. Tyler McDowell added his first of the season and went 3-for-4 with three runs scored. All but McDowell also had a double in the contest as LCSC had 10 of its 17 hits go for extra bases.
We come out every game with the same approach,” Zanon said. “I thought we played pretty well today. We seem to get better every game and progress. As long as we are getting better every day I think we will be fine.”
In all, McDowell, Reiten and Buhner, hitting sixth through eighth in the lineup on Friday, were a combined 8-of-11 with eight RBI and nine runs scored.
The Warriors broke a scoreless tie with three runs in the second inning. After McDowell singled, Reiten hit his home run to right-center field. A balk allowed the third run to score.
LCSC added a run in the third when Simpson’s right fielder lost the ball in the sky on two well hit fly balls that fell in for doubles. Robinson hit the first and later scored on Reiten’s double.
The Warriors broke the game open in the fifth with six runs for a 10-0 lead. Robinson started the scoring with a solo shot over the right-field fence and one out later, McDowell also homered to right. After Reiten singled, Buhner drove a pitch over the left-field fence for a two-run blast. Micah Brown’s sacrifice fly and a Simpson throwing error scored the final two runs.
Simpson got its only run when Derick Kuhn opened the inning with a walk and Rath Moseley and Kyle Ferguson followed with singles to load the bases. Aaron Curfman’s grounder scored Kuhn, but the Warriors turned a double play to get out of the jam.
The Warriors used four hits to score five runs in the sixth for a 15-1 lead. A walk, a single and a hit batter loaded the bases before a wild pitch scored the first run. Buhner hit a two-run double to center field and Zanon then jumped on a pitch that left the park quickly to left for his two-run home run.
“I just try to have the same approach every at bat and hit the ball hard,” Zanon said. “I try not to think about it too hard.”
The contest was the first of a four-game series. The two teams meet in a noon doubleheader on Saturday and then play a non-league contest at noon on Sunday.