WICHITA, Kan. — Holding on through a pair of comebacks, the Newman baseball team picked up a pair of victories over Wayne State Saturday afternoon in its home opener at McCarthy Field.
The Jets (3-2) saw Lucas Schauer record his second straight complete-game victory to open the season in a 4-3 win in the first game of the day, while they put together some timely hitting in the nightcap to earn a 6-4 win and start the four-game series off with a sweep of the Wildcats (0-2).
Newman started the home slate off with a bang, scoring two runs in the bottom of the first inning. Lucas Norton drew a walk from the leadoff spot and reached third on Tyler Bugner's single through the right side. Bugner swiped his third base of the season and drew an errant throw by the catcher trying to nab him, allowing Norton to score. A Garett Thomas sacrifice fly plated Bugner to stake the Jets to the 2-0 lead.
A pair of singles from Bugner and Aaron Mack in the bottom of the fifth helped the hosts get back in front after Wayne State tied things up with single runs in the second and fourth. A pair of errors aided in the scoring as well, as Nick Griffin reached on an error and came around to score on another. Bugner's infield single was enough to push Norton across for a crucial insurance run.
That extra score ended up being the difference as Schauer got into a bit of a jam in the top of the seventh. With two men on after an error and a single, the junior picked up his ninth strikeout of the day. A hit batter followed by a sac fly got the Wildcats within one run, but a slick play by Griffin at second base led to the third and final out to preserve the win.
The Jets trailed for the only time all day for a short stretch to start Game 2. Wayne State put two runs on the board in the first, and despite three straight singles to load the bases, Newman could manage just a single run when Thomas was hit by a pitch in the bottom half of the inning.
Things picked up when the Jets plated three in the third inning, as Norton and Bugner each singled and Mack walked to load the bases with one out. After a strikeout, Mitchell Beaudreau and Paul Rupnik both put the ball in play to make things happen with two outs, as Beaudreau knocked a two-run single to left and Rupnik reached on an error that allowed Mack to score and put Newman ahead for good.
A sacrifice bunt from Andrew Russell added a run in the bottom of the sixth, and the Jets stretched the lead to two once again in the eighth on an RBI single from Mack. After getting knocked around a little bit in the first inning, Dylan Porter settled in to work seven innings and get the win, with Chase Wilson allowing just one hit over the final two innings to record the save.
Bugner was 6-for-8 over the two games and stole three bases on the day. Mack was 4-for-5 across the two games, while Beaudreau and Norton each had a pair of hits.
The Jets and the Wildcats close out the series with another doubleheader Sunday beginning at noon at McCarthy Field.
