Baseball splits home doubleheader with Coffeyville
Butler baseball picked up its first home win of the 2017 season in a doubleheader split with Coffeyville on Sunday at McDonald Stadium.
The Grizzlies (3-4 overall) lost a 2-1 contest in the opening game, but responded with a 9-5 win over the Red Ravens in the second game despite getting just three hits in the nightcap.
Butler will travel to play Sterling College JV on Wednesday for a 2:00 p.m. contest before beginning a five-game stretch at home. The Grizzlies will host McPherson College JV in a Feb. 22 doubleheader beginning at 1:00 p.m., then face Southeast Nebraska for a three-game series on Feb. 25-26.
Game 1 - Coffeyville 2, Butler 1
Butler made a late seventh-inning rally, but fell short against the Ravens in the first game.
Trailing 2-0, the Grizzlies managed to load the bases with one out, getting a bunt single, hit by pitch and a walk. Javis Larson broke the shutout with a sacrifice fly to left to score Tanner Hearon, but after a Ravens pitching change, Connor Hurst struck out to end the contest.
Coffeyville scored a run in both the third and fifth innings, with the first run coming home on an RBI groundout by Jose Carraquillo to drive in Braden Kirkpatrick. The Ravens added the second run on an RBI single down the left-field line by Carson Pickard.
Starter Corey Murphy took the loss for Butler, despite giving up only two earned runs on five hits in five innings. Dakota Rodd was solid in relief with a pair of shutout innings, allowing just one baserunner on a walk and striking out two.
Offensively, the Grizzlies were limited to just four hits, with three of them coming from the bottom of the lineup.
Game 2 - Butler 9, Coffeyville 5
Butler took advantage of poor Coffeyville pitching with a seven-run second inning. The Grizzlies only had two hits, as the Ravens had five walks and hit two batters in the inning.
The Grizzlies quickly loaded the bases with no outs behind two consecutive walks and a Garrett Glass hit by pitch. Trent Smith then scored the opening run when Mason Goade was hit with a pitch. After a strikeout for the first out, Javis Larson and Connor Hurst both received bases-loaded walks to score two more runs.
Two batters later, Tanner White singled right back at Coffeyville pitcher Gavin Heltemes to score Goade. Another bases-loaded walk, this time to Trent Smith, scored Larson from third. After a pitching change, Garrett Xanders drove in two runs with an RBI single.
Coffeyville scored four runs in the sixth, with the big hit coming on a two-run single down the left-field line by Bret Mitchell. Butler escaped further damage in the inning as Caleb Nunez got Chase Ellison to ground out into an inning-ending double play.
Butler added two more insurance runs in the sixth with a pair of sacrifice flies from Connor Hurst and Tanner White.
In the seventh with Butler leading 9-5, Coffeyville had the bases loaded with the game-tying run at the plate, but reliever Travis Hennessy ended the game as Tyler Brown hit into a double play.
Blake Mullendore earned his first win of the season, throwing five shutout innings while giving up no earned runs on five hits. Hennessy picked up the save by recording the final two outs.
Hurst, White and Xanders each drove in two runs for Butler, while Larson led the Grizzlies by scoring two runs.
