Courtesy of Midland Athletics
- ST. LOUIS, Mo. – On the final day of its weekend road trip to St. Louis, Midland University took both games of a doubleheader against Harris-Stowe State University. The Warriors’ offense heated up in the opener, 25-9, and then solid pitching clinched the series with a shutout, 3-0.
GAME ONE: Midland 25, Harris-Stowe State 9.
The Warriors started strong at the top of the first, scoring six runs from two hits. Garrett Freeman drove in two runs home off a single to get things going. Alec Villanueva earned a bases-loaded walk to bring in the third run and then Haydn Crawford drove two more with a single. The final run of the top half of the inning came across as Midland attempted a double steal. Villanueva scored while Crawford was cut down on the base path.
In the bottom of the inning, the Hornets narrowed the gap with four runs off five hits.
The Warriors’ bats continued to strike in the 2nd as Freeman hit a two-run home run after Jayden Gibson led off with a double. Peterson was driven in by a sacrifice fly by Crawford for the ninth MU run and then singles by Beau Boyle and Jacob Liquori each drove in a run.
A wild pitch brought in Reyes who had walked earlier in the inning. Freeman then drove in a run with a single and Connor Petersen earned an RBI as he reached on a fielder’s choice, making it a 14-4 lead.
Midland held the HSSU to just two runs in the bottom of the second.
The trend of high-scoring innings continued as the Warriors’ bats stayed red-hot in the 3rd. They scored seven runs on seven hits, with RBIs from Liquori, Gibson (2), Freeman, and Villanueva (3).
The Hornets could only muster a pair of runs in the bottom as they failed to keep pace with their guests.
After both teams kept from adding to their totals in the 4th, the Hornets scratched their final run of the game across the plate in the 5th.
The final two innings for the Warriors yielded four more runs. Tyler Struck opened up the 6th with a homer to center field and Liquori added an RBI single. Reyes got an RBI walk in the 7th just before Liquori earned his fourth RBI with a hit-by-pitch.
Statistical Standouts
- Alec Villanueva: 4-for-5, HR, 4 RBI, 4 R, 2 2B
- Garrett Freeman: 4-for-6, HR, 6 RBI, 3 R
- Jacob Liquori: 3-for-5, 4 RBI, 3 R
- Haydn Crawford: 2-for-4, 3 RBI, R, SAC
- Jayden Gibson: 2-for-6, 2 RBI, 4 R, 2 2B, SB, BB
- Tyler Struck: 1-for-4, HR, RBI, R
GAME TWO: Midland 3, Harris-Stowe State 0
Game two of the doubleheader was much quieter for the scoreboard operator as the teams combined for three runs throughout the entire game, all from Midland.
The first run came across in the 1st as Nathaniel Reyes led off with a double to right and then stole third with one out. Jayde Gibson brought him in with an infield groundout.
In the 3rd, Garrett Freeman hit a solo home run to lead off the inning and make it a two-run game for starter Lucas Hamzeh who was dealing on the mound. He would go five innings on the hill, allowing just three hits.
A double from Connor Peterson in the 7th added another insurance run as he drove in Jacob Liquori who led off the inning with a single.
Hamzeh combined with Jonathan Foreman for the shutout victory. Hamzeh picked up the win while Foreman earned the two-inning save.
Statistical Standouts
- Garrett Freeman: 1-for-3, HR, RBI
- Connor Petersen: 2-for-4, RBI, 2 2B
- Jacob Liquori: 1-for-4, R, 2 SB
Midland (5-7) will have a quick turnaround as they travel back home from St. Louis just in time to start a three-game series against Presentation (0-11) on Tuesday. The teams will play a doubleheader on March 7 beginning at 11:00 a.m. at Jerry Frerichs Field in Elkhorn, Nebraska. The third game of the series is slated for a noon first pitch on Wednesday.
