DENVER – The Fort Hays State baseball team picked up another split against Regis on Sunday (Feb. 19), taking game one 11-9 before dropping the series finale 15-4. The Tigers are now 7-5 on the year before entering conference play next weekend, while the Rangers move to 6-6 this season.
Elliott Herrmann drove in six RBI on the day, including five in game one, while Trey DeGarmo scored four runs on four hits in the opener.
The Tigers will return to Hays to host Washburn in their home opener and conference opener next weekend (Feb. 24-26) at Larks Park.
Game 1 – Fort Hays State 11, Regis 9
The Tigers took advantage of multiple Ranger miscues in the top of the first, plating three runs on two hits, one error, one walk, one hit batter, one passed ball and one balk. Emile Boies picked up the lone RBI of the inning, singling in Isaiah Ural.
Regis responded with a four-spot in home half of the first before Nate Whitehill came on to record the final two outs via strikeout. The lefty reliever then put up back-to-back scoreless frames before giving up an unearned run in the fourth. He struck out four batters and walked none over 3.1 innings of relief, allowing five hits.
While Whitehill was dealing on the mound, the Tiger offense kept things rolling at the dish. Two walks and an infield single loaded the base for Herrmann in the second, who drove in a run with a groundout. Zane Knox later drew the fourth walk of the inning, putting the Tigers back on top, 5-4.
DeGarmo and Ural led off the fourth with back-to-back doubles before Herrmann crushed his team-leading fifth home run of the year, giving the Tigers an 8-4 lead.
Regis closed within three with an unearned run in the fourth before Jenner Kehe came on to record the final out in the inning and strand a runner at third. The Tigers grabbed that run right back in the top of the fifth with a two-out rally. DeGarmo kept the inning alive with a single to left before Ural beat out an infield single to third. Herrmann followed with his fourth RBI of the day, singling into right field.
Zach Berg then came out of the pen to retire the side in order in the fifth before the Rangers mounted a rally in the sixth. Regis tied things up at nine with four runs, including two that were unearned, on three hits. Cade Flaherty appeared to be out of the inning after a strikeout, but the tying run came in to score on a dropped third strike.
The Tigers bounced back in the top of the seventh, plating a pair of unearned runs on two errors and a wild pitch. The Rangers booted a pair of grounders on potential inning-ending double plays before Ed Scott gave the Tigers the lead by scoring on a wild pitch. Knox doubled the lead with an RBI fielder’s choice two batters later.
Boies stepped onto the mound in the bottom of the seventh and retired the side in order, collecting his second save of the year thanks to two strikeouts and a pop up. Flaherty (1-0) picked up his first win of the season after striking out two of the six batters he faced in the sixth.
Game 2 – Regis 14, Fort Hays State 4
A walk to Ural prompted a two-out rally for the Tigers in the top of the first, with FHSU plating two runs on a Herrmann double and a Boies single. Dustin Menardworked around a hit and a walk to post a scoreless first before retiring the side in order in the second.
Regis later tied the game at two behind a pair of unearned runs in the third before taking the lead with another run in the fourth. The Tigers manufactured a game-tying run in the top of the fifth when Daniel Bebee led off with a single. The catcher moved up 90 feet on a sacrifice bunt before completing his trip around the bases on a pair of wild pitches.
The Rangers took control in the fifth, pushing across 11 runs on seven hits and two errors. Both sides added single runs in the sixth before the Tigers went down in order in the seventh to wrap up the series split.
Menard (0-1) allowed five runs, four of which were unearned, on three hits over 4.1 innings of work. The lefty struck out two batters and walked four.
Friday
DENVER, Colo. – The Fort Hays State baseball team split its first doubleheader with Regis on Saturday (Feb. 18). After falling in a tough battle in the opener, the Tigers scored eight runs over the final three innings to complete the comeback in game two and secure the split. The Tigers move to 6-4 overall, while the Rangers move to 5-5.
Game One – Regis 6, Fort Hays State 4
The Tigers were playing from behind for the duration of the opener after the Rangers plated two runs in the bottom of the first. FHSU cut the lead in half with a solo bomb from Zane Knox in the top of the second inning, but Regis plated their third run of the game on a sacrifice fly in the home half to go back up by two. Emilie Boies brought home Trey DeGarmo with an RBI single in the following frame before the Rangers plated two more runs in the bottom of the third.
Two singles and a walk loaded the bases for the Tigers in the fourth, setting up a run for Mikey Felton on a wild pitch. The Tiger pitching staff held the Rangers scoreless in the bottom of the inning, which allowed them to cut the Ranger lead back to one with an RBI single from Felton in the fifth. Regis plated their final run of the contest in the home half of the fifth to push their lead to 6-4. The Tigers were unable to figure out Ranger reliever Ethan Sloan in the final two innings, with the lefty retiring all six batters he faced to finish the game.
Felton and DeGarmo led the way at the plate, each managing two hits. Connor Holle (1-1) and Spencer Maleyeach recorded a pair of strikeouts on the mound.
Game Two – Fort Hays State 13, Regis 10
Fort Hays State got on the board first in the night cap, scoring three runs in the opening frame. Isaiah Ural plated the first two on a bases-clearing triple before Elliott Herrmann singled to bring him home.
The Rangers overcame the early deficit with two big innings, bringing seven runs across in the second and third innings. The Tigers chipped away at the Ranger lead in the fourth scoring two runs on a wild pitch and a sacrifice fly by Ural, but the Rangers answered with a run in the home half of the frame and another in the sixth.
Trailing by four in the top of the seventh, the Tiger offense got to work. In the seventh, an RBI single from Knox and a bases-loaded walk drawn by Dylan Hupfer brought the Tigers within two before a fielder’s choice in the eighth shrunk the Ranger lead to 9-8.
In the final frame, the Tigers pieced together a five-run rally with two outs to take the lead. Down to the last two strikes in the game, Ed Scott put the tying run on base on a single up the middle. DeGarmo followed with a double down the left field line, tying the score at nine.
After an intentional walk was granted to Ural, Herrmann sent a first-pitch, three-run bomb over the fence in left center to give the Tigers the lead. Boies followed with a solo home run of his own three pitches later, putting the Tigers in front 13-9.
Boies came in to pitch in the ninth, allowing one run before getting a game-ending double play up the middle.
Herrmann finished 4-for-6 at the plate and drove in four runs while Scott, Ural, and Knox each collected three hits in the contest. Andrew Hansen punched out five batters via strikeout while allowing eight runs (four earned) over 3.2 innings of work. Jake Campbell collected his first win of the season allowing only one run on four hits through 4.1 innings pitched.