In front of a crowd of 1,878, the largest of the season, Colorado Mesa University provided their own share of fireworks on one of the most popular nights of the baseball season: fireworks night.
CMU hit three home runs in a 9-4 win against Dixie State University and gave fans at Suplizio Field more than enough to cheer about before the postgame show.
Garrett Hutson received the nod in game two of a four-game series against the Trailblazers. The senior gave another bounce-back performance in a 7.0 inning gem where he worked through a few rough innings for his second straight quality start.
The Mavericks began their win with a crooked number in the fourth. Hunter Douglas followed Josh Shapiro’s bunt single with an opposite field two-run home run that hit the top of the wall and bounced over. The home run was his 11th on the season to give CMU a 2-0 lead. Douglas showed bunt but pulled his bat back and stayed back on a 2-1 fastball.
Three batters later with Dominic DeMarco on base after a walk, Haydn McGeary launched his eighth home run on the year, a no-doubt shot to right center that hit the scoreboard.
Douglas added two more RBIs to his nightly total with a single through the left side to extend CMU’s lead 6-1. On a 2-2 count, Douglas received a fastball up and away from reliever Tevita Gerber, and he yanked it past shortstop Bryce Feist. The runs were charged to Dixie starter Jayden Murray, who exited after a two-out hit by pitch.
Murray was sharp through three innings but couldn’t limit the Mesa the second time through the lineup. He allowed four walks, four hits, and six runs in 4 ⅔ innings. Just like last night’s starter Preston Hannay, Murray lasted the same amount of innings tonight as he did in his first start against CMU earlier this season.
Douglas registered his fifth RBI of the game with a solo shot to left center off right-hander Brecken Lewis.
Hutson rebounded after the start where he allowed three home runs. Tonight was an improved performance against the Trailblazers with one run on three hits in 7 innings. The senior struck out 10, walked three and worked himself out of trouble in a few innings to keep Dixie from putting up a crooked number.
The Trailblazers cut the lead to 8-4 when Tanner Harper blasted a three-run home run to left field off CMU reliever Gage Edwards. The damage was done with two outs, and it was Harper’s first home run of the season.
After a pair of two-out walks to Dixie batters, Frankie Fitzgerald came in for Edwards and walked another to load the bases. With the tying run on the plate, Fitzgerald got Braxton Ipson to pop out to shortstop Caleb Farmer to end the threat.
Fitzgerald had less trouble in the ninth with a clean inning to capture CMU’s 40th victory, his third save and their seventh straight win. The top half of the ninth featured a slick defense play by Farmer deep in the hole.
Game notes
-Douglas is heating up at the right time for Mesa. The right fielder is on a 14-for-34 (.424) streak over his past nine games with a pair of two-home run games and 11 RBIs. The leadoff guru sports a six-game hit streak and leads CMU with 12 home runs.
-After Friday’s win, Mesa has won four in a row against Dixie state this season. They’ve defeated the Trailblazers in their last 10 meetings dating back to 2017 and will look to make it 12 in a row on Saturday.
–Although Hutson had a six-run start a few weeks ago, the senior continues to stay at the top of several RMAC pitching categories. He ranks second behind JR McDermott in ERA (2.52), first in opponent batting average (.197), first in wins (9), and second in strikeouts (91). He’s been quite the presence on the mound for CMU.
