Strong pitching in both games and some timely hitting in the nightcap lifted the Mavs to wins of 5-1 and 6-3 over the defending Western Conference champion Great Falls Stallions in nonconference action at Lindborg-Cregg Field.
Bouncing back from painful losses to a solid Bozeman Bucks club, Missoula hit the field Sunday with a fresh attitude and played strong fundamental baseball to help erase memories of the previous day.
The Mavs got back on track immediately in the first game behind ace Conor Dwyer, making his first start on the mound since 2005 following Tommy John surgery. In the bottom of the first, Travis Johnsen led off with a walk, stole second and third before coming home on an error by Stallions' third baseman John Coleman.
An RBI goundout by Cody Burgmeier in the second gave Dwyer a 2-0 lead and all the run support he would need. In five innings, he baffled the Great Falls bats, allowing a single run on two hits and three walks. Of the 15 outs the Mavs recorded with Dwyer (1-0) on the hill, 11 came by strikeout.
“He had a lot of strikeouts and he threw real hard today,” Hathaway said. “He's just got to work a little more consistently so he doesn't take himself out of game ny throwing too many pitches. But it really was a good day for Conor.”
Missoula right fielder Mike Spritzer reached base in each at-bat with a single, an RBI double in the third and a fifth-inning base on balls. Johnsen, Burgmeier, Mike Ponton and Max Smith each added singles for the Mavs.
Dan Olinger tripled and scored on a sacrifice fly by Phil Parrish in the fifth for the Stallions' lone tally.
Mavericks reliever Taylor Nordby worked out of a jam in the sixth with the help of a 4-3 double play. He walked a pair in the seventh before giving way to Johnsen, who induced a pair of groundouts to end it.
Brendan Brown got the starting pitching duty for the Mavs in the second game and after a shaky third frame, settled down to collect a complete game four-hitter. A two-run blast by Parrish and a wild pitch led to a 3-0 Great Falls lead through two and a half.
But the Mavs returned the favor in the bottom of the inning on a three-run, inside-the-park homer by Dwyer to the depths of right-center field.
After a leadoff triple by Ponton in the bottom of the sixth, Missoula took its first lead when Spritzer drove Ponton home with a single. Two more came home on a Johnsen two-bagger before Brown (1-0) shut the door with a 1-2-3 seventh.
“Brendan went out there, threw strikes with all three of his pitches and got ahead in the count most of the time,” Hathaway said. “What I was really impressed with was his competitive nature. He threw a couple more pitches than I wanted him to, but he really wanted to finish this game.”
Dwyer finished game No. 2 just a double shy of hitting for the cycle, finishing 3-for-4. Spritzer singled twice and was the only other Maverick with a multi-hit game in Missoula's 10-hit attack.
The Mavs return to action Saturday with a doubleheader at home against the Great Falls Electrics.
First game
Missoula Mavericks 5, Great Falls Stallions 1
Great Falls 000 010 0 - 1 2 3
Missoula 111 101 x - 5 6 0
Tanner Bleskin, Dustin Schultz (8) and Cole McPherson. Conor Dwyer, Taylor Nordby (6), Travis Johnsen (7) and Sean Dwyer. W - C. Dwyer (1-0). L - Bleskin (0-1).
GREAT FALLS - Phil Parrish 1-3, Zach Griffith 0-3, Bleskin 0-2, Schultz 0-0, John Coleman 0-3, Ricky Hedstrom 0-2, Kyle DeBolt 0-3, Dan Olinger 1-2, Taylor Ferradas 0-1, McPherson 0-2, Aaron Remus 0-2.
MISSOULA - Johnsen 1-2, Cody Burgmeier 1-3, S. Dwyer 0-3, Mike Ponton 1-3, Max Smith 1-2, Brendan Brown 0-4, Mike Spritzer 2-2, Trevor Bourquin 0-3, Drew Lytle 0-2, Taylor King 0-0.
2B - Spritzer. 3B - Olinger. RBIs. - Parrish, Burgmeier, Spritzer, Smith.
Second game
Missoula Mavericks 6, Great Falls Stallions 3
Great Falls 003 000 0 - 3 4 1
Missoula 003 003 x - 6 10 1
Parrish and McPherson. Brown and Mac Cuffe. W - Brown (1-0). L - Parrish (0-1).
GREAT FALLS - Parrish 1-2, Olinger 1-3, Bleskin 0-3, Hedstrom 0-3, Will Sutherland 0-3, Jake Mansch 0-3, McPherson 0-3, Aaron Stucker 2-3, John Coleman 0-1, Remus 0-0.
MISSOULA - King 0-3, Johnsen 1-3, C. Dwyer 3-4, Cuffe 1-3, S. Dwyer 0-3, Ponton 1-2, Spritzer 2-3, Nordby 1-3, Lytle 1-3.
2B - Johnsen. 3B - C. Dwyer, Ponton. HR - Parrish (1), C. Dwyer (2). RBIs. - Parrish 2, C. Dwyer 3, Johnsen 2, Spritzer.
Spikes sweep
At Bozeman, the Class A Missoula Mavericks dropped a nonconference doubleheader with the Bozeman Spikes, falling 6-3 in the first game before dropping an 11-1 decision in a game shortened to six innings due to the 10-run margin rule.
The Spikes broke open a 1-1 tie in with a four-run fourth inning of game No. 1, highlighted by Sean Zabawa's two-RBI double.
Malachi Cryder took the loss, allowing three hits and two unearned runs in the final two frames for Missoula. Kendal Maier went 2-for-3 with and RBI to pace Missoula's bats.
Colter Joyce and Matt Zabawa combined to limit the Mavs to just two hits in the second game as Missoula fell to 2-2.
Andrew Abate was the hitting star for Bozeman, going 3-for-4 with an RBI.
First game
Bozeman Spikes 6, Missoula Mavericks 3
Missoula 001 001 1 - 3 8 4
Bozeman 100 041 x - 6 6 2
Anthony Maes, Malachi Cryder (5) and Andy Freeman. Doug Crossman, Cole Smith (4), Kyle Oswald (7). W - Smith. L - Cryder. S - Oswald.
Second game
Final score
Missoula 000 010 - 1 2 3
Bozeman 041 006 - 11 10 0
Matt McMann, Shawn Griffith (5) and Jordan Schaefer. Colter Joyce, Sean Zabawa (6) and Andy Ballinger. W - Joyce. L - McMann.
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