By Jose Briseno, Castle Country Radio:
The USU Eastern Baseball team took the field over the weekend to face off against the Community Christian Saints in Price, Utah. For the first time this season, the Eagles were able to earn a four-game sweep and had their first no-hitter since 2015.
Game one, played Thursday afternoon, featured a comfortable 12-4 Eagle victory over Community Christian. Scott Bahde, Jake Mortensen, Dylan Hawkes, and Kaden Kunz led Eastern offensively as the four combined for ten runs batted in. Bahde hit a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the first inning to score Gabe Childs. Mortensen brought in runs on an RBI hit by pitch and an RBI single in the bottom of the sixth to bring in Ethan Hixson and Kaden Kunz. Hawkes roped a ball over the fence in the sixth to bring in Bahde on a monstrous two-run homerun. Kunz hit a sacrifice fly in the second inning to bring in Ty Barker. Kunz added a two-run double in the sixth. Ky Decker started on the mound for Eastern and tossed five innings. Decker allowed just four runs (three earned) on two hits and nine strikeouts. Westin Corless finished the final two innings and allowed just one hit to the seven batters he faced.
Game two, the first part of a Friday doubleheader, was a tightly contested 4-0 win for Eastern as Hayden Brock allowed just two hits to the Saints in six innings of work. Brock tallied ten strikeouts and allowed just five walks. Tyler Fitch entered the game in the seventh inning to close out the Saints and did so on three straight strikeouts to strike out the side. Jake Mortensen and Carson Hawkes had home runs for the Eagles in the four-run triumph.
“These games were big for us,” head coach Kirk Haney said. “We needed momentum going into this final stretch of the season and these games gave us the push we are needing to close out this season strong.”
Game three, the second part of the doubleheader, clinched the series victory for USU Eastern as Kody Nelson got the win on the mound. After a first inning home run, Nelson settled in and retired the Saints with ease. In six innings, Nelson allowed just four hits and one earned run. He also struck out nine batters and walked just two. Troy Connell finished the game for Eastern as he held the Saints at bay in the seventh inning. Connell, however, did allow two runs on two hits, but was able to finish of CCC.
Game four, played on Saturday, was the icing on the cake for Eastern as freshman Carson Hawkes no-hit the Saints in a 10-2 victory. While it is unusual for a pitcher to allow two runs in a no-hitter, Hawkes became the first Eagle pitcher to throw a no-hitter since Jayce Hill did so in 2015. Hawkes received plenty of support on the mound from the Eagle bats as all nine starters were able to reach base safely in the contest. Vaughn Deming and Kaden Kunz led the Eagles with two RBIs each as the Eagles were able to complete the sweep.
This weekend, the Eagles will travel to Rangely, Colorado to take on the Colorado Northwestern Spartans in a four-game series. The Eagles will look to extend their four-game win streak and inch closer to third place in the SWAC standings. First pitch will be thrown Thursday, Apr. 21 at 3:00 PM.