BILLINGS, Mont. – The Colorado School of Mines fought power hitting with power hitting on Friday afternoon and came up short in a doubleheader sweep at MSU Billings, falling 21-11 and 11-8 at Pirtz Field.
 
Derek Daly spearheaded the charge at the plate and finished the day batting .500 with four runs and four RBI on three hits including two home runs and a double. All of Daly's offensive numbers were tops on the team for Mines including his 1.667 slugging percentage and three walks. Caden Bonds also hit .500 and produced one run and one RBI on four hits. Ben Schoneman and Noah Kuzma notched multiple base knocks as well. Kuzma joined the power party with a long ball as did Jason Hall and Danny McDermott. Rounding out the top performers was Alex Bumpus who went hitless but scored four times and drove in one run.
 
On the mound, Tyler Blomster (1-1) started game one and took the loss. Drew Hill (3-0) started game two but didn't factor in the decision as Walter Pennington (1-2) wore defeat in relief. That trio combined for 9.2 innings of work featuring 18 strikeouts, but also surrendered 22 runs on 17 hits. Other appearances out of the bullpen included Nick Gardner, Nate Giefer and Will Scott. Gardner escaped with the only 0.00 ERA of the day thanks to one hit and no runs over two outs. The five hurlers combined for 22 strikeouts over 14.0 innings and two games.
 
Mines (6-5) produced five home runs and four doubles to slug .547 on the day, but ended with a batting average of .250. Regionally-ranked MSU Billings defended its practice facility by hitting .411 and slugging .932 behind 10 home runs, six doubles and one triple. The Yellowjackets pitching staff gave up 15 earned runs and struck out fewer batters, but the Orediggers surrendered 31 earned runs which offset the 22 strikeouts on the mound. The loss drops Mines into a three-game skid while MSUB rebounds from a loss with back-to-back wins.
 
GAME ONE: MSU Billings 21, Mines 11
After schedule adjustments and venue changes, Friday's opener proved straight forward despite the extravagant number of runs. MSU Billings burst out to a 12-0 lead behind four dingers and one double after four innings of play. The home team made it 17-0 after six frames before the Orediggers found a response.
 
Mines' answer came in the form of 11 runs over the seventh and eighth innings. Hall and McDermott sparked it with back-to-back long balls in the top of the seventh. Kuzma added a two-run shot in the same panel while Derek Daly added his own mashed tater in the eighth. However, MSUB produced four runs in the same span to keep its lead comfortable and complete the victory. Kuzma and Bonds were the only Orediggers with multiple hits in the opener as Derek Daly, Kuzma and Lucas Ciacco all scored twice.
 
GAME TWO: MSU Billings 11, Mines 8
Friday's finale provided a markedly different start to the game. This time, it was Mines bursting into the early lead. The advantage came via a two-out, two-run bomb from Derek Daly that brought Bumpus across the plate as well. Unfortunately, MSU Billings came up with three runs on two home runs to make the score 3-2 after just one inning of action. But the Orediggers did not stop scoring there. While there were no more home runs, Derek Daly doubled in the third as part of a two-run panel. Then, Kuzma walked a run in to make it 5-4 in the top of the fifth.
 
The Yellowjackets managed to keep pace, tying the game or taking the lead each time Mines scored a run. It was a two-run home run that gave MSUB a 7-5 lead and a sixth-inning grand slam finished the job. The four-run shot offset a RBI-single from Bonds in the top half of the fifth. It also provided enough insurance to make Jakob Pigati's two-run single academic in the top of the seventh. The final out of the game found Pigati still standing on first base.
 
NOTABLES
- Mines still leads the all-time series with MSU Billings by a margin of 3-2.
- Daly's trio of hits on Friday were his first hits of the season – all for extra bases.
- Additionally, Daly's home runs moved the senior to 34 in his career which ranks #3 in program history.
- The last time the Orediggers gave up 21 runs was the season finale in 2018 against Colorado Mesa.
- Hill leads the team with 30 strikeouts on the year. He also has 149 in his career which ranks #8 in Mines' record book.
- Robby Bales is 46-20 in two years as the head coach for the Orediggers.
 
WHAT'S NEXT
Mines closes the three-game series against MSU Billings on Sunday with a single game at 12 p.m. Live stats and video of the game will be available at www.minesathletics.com.