The Missouri Western baseball team won a come from behind slug fest against the Fort Hays State Tigers. The Griffons scored seven unanswered runs to win 12-10 and advance in the MIAA Tournament. The Griffons are now 37-8 on the season and have tied a school record for most wins in a season which has been held since 1974.
The Griffons got on the board in the first when Michael Schulze led off with a double to left field and later scored on a Nate Ramler double to left center. The Griffons padded their lead in the second when Bubba Dotson blasted a two run homer giving MWSU the 3-0 lead. The homer was the second in two days and 12th of the season.
In the third inning the Tigers got three hits and three runs tying the score at three. Kelton Rule got the big single which scored two Tigers.
The Griffons stayed calm and responded like they have all season. Ramler led off with a double and scored on a Spencer Shockley single and then Jake Schrader doubled scoring Shockley giving the Griffons a 5-3 lead after three innings of play.
The Tigers answered scoring the next seven runs which included a six run 6th inning. Ryan Busboom’s grand slam gave Fort Hays State a 10-5 lead after five and a half innings of play.
In the bottom of the sixth the Griffons responded once again scoring five runs on five hits. With one out in the inning Shawn Egge and Schulze got back-to-back singles and then Dotson walked loading the bases. RBI hits by Kyle Simpson, Grant Fink and Shockley tied the score at 10 after six innings of play.
The score remained tied until the bottom of the ninth when Shockley struck again with a two RBI single giving the Griffons the 12-10 lead. Mason Queen closed it out in the 9th improving to 2-0 on the season. He went 3.1 innings giving up no hits and striking out three.
Schulzed went 3-for-5 with three runs scored and with his three hits he has tied the single season record for hits with 81. Simpson and Shockley also had three hits in the game. Shockley had five RBI. All nine Griffons had a hit in the contest as they finished with 17 on the day.
The Tigers end their season 23-22 overall. FHSU had eight hist with Jordan Miller going 2-for-3. Jesse Hart got the loss going 2.1 innings. He gave up three hits and two earned runs. He falls to 3-4 with the loss.
The Griffons will play on Thursday against Central Oklahoma in a four team double elimination tournament at Community America Ballpark in Kansas City, Kan. First pitch is scheduled for 11:00 a.m. and can be heard on ESPN 1550 and 1550espn.com. The other two teams in the tournament are Pittsburg State and Missouri Southern.
— MWSU Sports Information —