Griffons trample Mustangs 8-1

By Ralph Pokorny

Nevada Daily Mail

The Nevada Griffons held off a ninth inning rally by the St. Joseph Mustangs to win their second straight against the Mustangs 8-1.

"We can't let them back in the game. They can hurt you in a heartbeat," Ryan Mansfield, Griffons head coach said Thursday night.

"They're a pretty solid club, but they're beatable," Mansfield said.

The Griffons are now 2-1 against the Mustangs and face them again on Saturday night in St. Joseph.

Mansfield said that for the most part he is pleased with the way the team is playing, but there are still some areas that need work.

"There were a couple errors," he said, adding that they are things they can work on.

Mansfield said that he was looking at starting Joel Klock who had a good outing in his previous appearance.

He said that he was planning to work some additional players into the lineup Saturday, but said that will be a challenge as well as everyone is hitting currently.

The Griffons started Steve Kuligowski who struck out the first three Mustang batters and held them hitless through the fifth inning.

The Griffons got on the board in the first inning when Reed Watson got on base with a single after lead-off batter Stuart Jeck struck out and advanced to third on a single by Peter Barrow. A RBI double by Rick Hepworth scored Watson for a 1-0 lead.

The Griffons held their 1-0 lead until the third inning when they added four more runs.

Jeck's struck out and Watson reached first base on a single, advancing to second on a single by Peter Barrow. Hepworth's second consecutive RBI double put Watson across home for the second time and moved Barrow to second.

Jake Parsons walked and designated hitter Nick Doughty reached first on an error by the first baseman. Parsons moved to second and Hepworth advanced to third. Barrows scored for a 4-0 lead.

Josh Samuelson grounded out, advancing Doughty to second and Parsons to third, sending Hepworth home for a 5-0 lead.

Colby Shepherd hit a single, scoring Parsons and Doughty for a 6-0 lead. Griffons catcher Quaid McKinnon struck out for out number 3.

The Griffons held a 6-0 lead until the seventh inning when the Mustangs Kris Koerper led off with a home run over the centerfield fence narrowing the score to 6-1. Will Mulligan reached first on an error and stole second and reached third when Landinn Eckhardt hit a ground ball to the short stop and was thrown out at first, for the Mustangs's second out. Jake Kretzer struck out to end their run.

The Griffons kept pace in the bottom of the seventh when Hepworth struck out and Parsons hit a single to left field. A RBI triple by Nick Doughty scored Parsons for a 7-1 lead. Samuelson walked and advanced to second on a ground out to short by Shepherd. McKinnon's fly was caught for the third out.

In the eighth inning Jeck grounded out to first base and Watson walked. A RBI double by Barrows scored Watson for an 8-1 lead. Hepworth and Tangney struck out to end the inning.

In the ninth inning Mansfield brought in Laurent Zinoni who is one of several pitchers he is looking at as a closer.

The Mustangs Kris Koerper led off with a walk and Mark Robinett struck struckout swinging. Will Mulligan hit a single moving Koerper to second. Eckhardt walked moving Mulligan to second and Koerper to third. Kretzer struck and Jordan Guida's fly ball to centerfield was caught to end the game.