TOPEKA, Kan. — Getting an offensive explosion from its bats, the Newman baseball team ran its winning streak to five straight games, ruining Washburn's home opener with a 15-5 victory Tuesday afternoon.
The Jets (6-2) saw seven players collect multiple hits and 10 score at least one run as the bullpen combined to toss seven shutout innings to preserve the victory.
Newman got things started early with a two-out, two-run home run from Garett Thomas, the senior's second of the season. After going up 3-0 in the third, the Jets watched as the Ichabods (4-4) pushed across five runs to take the lead in the bottom half of the frame, allowing in one inning more than they allowed in any of their past four games.
The deficit didn't last long, as the first two batters in the fourth reached and were knocked in by Jacob Hamerle's two-run single up the middle. The Jets took the lead for good on Tyler Bugner's RBI single and tacked on an insurance run on Aaron Mack's double to left, although plenty more insurance was on the way.
Nick Griffin skied a sacrifice fly to make it 8-5 in the fifth, and Brian Canfield drove in two with a single in the sixth after Mitchell Beaudreau got an RBI the hard way when he was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. Griffin added two more RBIs with a triple with one out in the eighth, and Bugner's one-run double later in the inning was nearly a two-run double if not for Lucas Norton getting cut down at the plate. Griffin's walk with the sacks full in the ninth closed the scoring.
After the hosts scored five runs on three hits and a walk and a hit by pitch in the third, they got only nine baserunners total over the final seven innings. Trey Tucker got the win, getting three quick outs after entering with no outs, while Corey Mondello allowed just two hits and a walk and struck out two over four frames. Justen Heuermann and Joe Cannady combined to keep the scoreless streak up over the last two and keep the Ichabods at bay.
Bugner led the way with a 4-for-6 game at the plate, scoring twice, knocking in two runs and stealing a base. The big day raised the junior's batting average to .586 over eight games. Jordan Doan was 3-for-4 and scored three runs, while Canfield was 3-for-5 with a walk. Hamerle, Thomas, Mack and Norton all had two hits.
The Jets are back at McCarthy Field this weekend, hosting Southwest Minnesota State in a four-game series Saturday and Sunday.
