While rain swept through Lindborg-Cregg Field delaying the Missoula Mavericks' Western Division contest with the Kalispell Lakers nearly two hours, the Mavs hunkered down and got ready to play some American Legion baseball. Boy, were they ever ready.With solid pitching and an offensive explosion that seemingly produced more hits than The Beatles, the Mavericks pounded Kalispell 21-0 Monday evening in a game limited to 6fi innings due to the 10-run margin rule.
While Cody Burgmeier combined with Brendan Brown to hold the Lakers to just two hits, the Missoula bats shook away the raindrops and blasted the Lakers to the tune of 15 hits.
Mavs catcher Chris Bartenhagen pounded out four singles and drove in four runs. Designated hitter Mike Ponton chimed in with three singles and four RBIs. Right fielder Taylor Nordby doubled and plated three, while Max Smith had two RBIs in a 2-for-5 evening.
Burgmeier didn't surrender a hit - a Derek Keller double - until there was one away in the fifth. He went five complete, walking three without getting a strikeout. Burgmeier was helped by fine defensive work from center fielder Dan Belet, who made a diving catch of a sinking Austin Zapata liner in the first and Travis Johnsen, who robbed Tyler Reichoff of a base hit with a stab at short in the fourth.
Brown tossed the final two frames allowing two walks and a single by Zapata. Both of his strikeouts came in the seventh, including getting Tucker Hankinson looking for the game's final out.
With a total of eight errors, the Kalispell defense did little to help pitchers Zach Davis and Adam Olson. Davis lasted just 3 2-3 innings, allowing 11 runs on 10 hits and five walks.
After tallying two in the first and one in the second, the Mavs scored five in the bottom of the third, highlighted by Bartenhagen's two-run single.
Already ahead 15-0 in the sixth, Missoula got contributions from some of its role players in scoring six more runs in the frame. Mike Spritzer pinch hit and doubled home a run in his lone at-bat, while Nordby and Smith added run-scoring base hits in the inning as the drizzle returned.
The Mavericks return to action Friday at Lindborg-Cregg, when they face the Belgrade Bandits in a doubleheader beginning at 5 p.m.
Kalispell 000 000 0 - 0 2 8
Missoula 215 346 x - 21 15 2
Zach Davis, Adam Olson (4) and Pat Hergesheimer, Tony Lawrence (4). Cody Burgmeier, Brendan Brown (6) and Chris Bartenhagen. W - Burgmeier. L - Davis.
KALISPELL - Jacob Scott 0-3, Austin Zapata 1-3, Tyler Reichoff 0-2, Zac Ford 0-0, Olson 0-2, John White 0-3, Derek Keller 1-3, Davis 0-1, Lawrence 0-1, Hergesheimer 0-1, Greg Neils 0-0, Tucker Hankinson 0-3.
MISSOULA - Taylor King 0-1, Drew Lytle 0-2, Dan Belet 0-4, Mike Spritzer 1-1, Conor Dwyer 1-2, Mac Cuffe 1-4, Bartenhagen 4-4, Mike Ponton 3-5, Travis Johnsen 1-4, Taylor Nordby 2-3, Max Smith 2-5.
2B - Keller, Spritzer, Dwyer, Nordby. RBIs - King, Spritzer, Dwyer, Bartenhagen 4, Ponton 4, Nordby 3, Smith 2.
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