DRAGONS, RAVENS SPLIT FOR SECOND TIME

Sophomore Riley Metzger drives in three runs in Hutchinson's 7-2 win in Game 1 of a doubleheader with Coffeyville on Wednesday at Hobart-Detter Field (Bre Rogers/Blue Dragon Sports Information)
Sophomore Riley Metzger drives in three runs in Hutchinson's 7-2 win in Game 1 of a doubleheader with Coffeyville on Wednesday at Hobart-Detter Field (Bre Rogers/Blue Dragon Sports Information)

Hutchinson CC Sports Information

Zane Schmidt had three hits and Riley Metzger had his second three-RBI game as for pitchers held Coffeyville to four hits as the Hutchinson Community College baseball team won its home opener on Wednesday at Hobart-Detter Field.

The No. 20-ranked Blue Dragons downed Coffeyville 7-2 in Game 1, but a nine-run fifth inning in the in the nightcap doomed Hutchinson as Coffeyville earned a split with 17-4 win.

Hutch and Coffeyville split a doubleheader for the second time this season. The first was the season opener on February 2 in Coffeyville.

The Blue Dragons are now 2-2 heading into a three-game series this weekend at Northeast Texas which begins at 6 p.m. on Friday in Mount Pleasant, Texas

GAME 1 RECAP
Metzger lined a two-out, two-run single in the bottom of the first inning to get the Blue Dragons going in the first half. Metzger drove home Logan Sartori and Ryan Moritz, then Zach Baxley scored on a balk to give Hutch a 3-0 lead after one inning.

Then leading 4-2 after four innings, the Blue Dragons pulled away with two in the fifth and one more run in the sixth.

Metzger doubled home Moritz and then scored on a Will Reetz RBI single in the fifth. Dylan Nedved scored on a wild pitch in the sixth to make it 7-2.

Ryan Summers' first career start was three spotless innings with four strikeouts. He earned the victory.

Brian Skillman gave up two runs and two hits in one inning. Zach Firmature allowed two hits and struck out one in two innings and Mike Brown scored a spotless seventh to finish off the game.

Offensively, the Blue Dragons pounded out 10 hits.

Zane Schmidt was 3 for 4 from the leadoff spot. Metzger went 2 for 3 with three RBIs, his second three-RBI game against Coffeyville this season. Nedved, Moritz and Metzger all doubled and Baxley had a triple.

GAME 2 RECAP
The second game was an uphill battled from the start for Hutchinson.

The Red Ravens scored three in the first. After the Dragons plated three in the fourth to tie it, the roof caved in.

Coffeyville scored nine runs on just one hit in the fifth inning. The Dragons added five errors, three walks and a pair of hit batsmen as the Ravens took charge to lead 12-3. Coffeyville added five more runs in the fifth.

The Ravens scored 17 runs on just seven hits and Hutch committed six errors and seven Blue Dragon pitchers walked a combined six Coffeyville batters.

Sophomore Matt Hopkins took the loss, going just 1-3 inning. He allowed only two hits, but all seven runs charged to him were unearned.

Three Coffeyville pitchers limited the Blue Dragons to four hits – Schmidt, Nedved, Sartori and Moritz.

Sartori had a two-run double in the fourth. He later scored on a Baxley sacrifice fly. Hutch's fourth run came in the sixth when Schmidt scored on a Moritz sacrifice fly.

The Blue Dragons begin a three-game weekend series at 6 p.m. on Friday against Northeast Texas in Mount Pleasant Texas. Saturday's game is at 2 p.m. and Sunday's game begins at noon.