GOLDEN, Colo. – The Colorado School of Mines Baseball team celebrated its 2019 senior class on Saturday afternoon and the decorated veteran group delivered as the Orediggers swept their doubleheader and the series against MSU Denver with 12-8 and 6-0 victories at Jim Darden Field in the 2019 regular-season finale.
 
Senior first-baseman Jace Selsor led the way offensively, batting .750 with three runs and two RBI on six hits including one double in the doubleheader sweep. Senior catcher Mikey Gangwish hit .500 on the day while scoring four times and racking up a team-high five RBI thanks to one double and two home runs. Senior outfielder John Howard was next on the list with a two-game average of .429, fueled by three hits with one double and four RBI. Senior Phil VanZale stepped in the designated hitter spot and produced a .400 average, scoring once and driving in two more while adding a double to the resume. Fellow seniors Daniel Ciraula, Ben Stinson and Joe Popp combined for three runs on five hits with one double and two RBI. Capping it off was Trevor Kehe who smacked two home runs and scored five times, hitting .500 on the day.
 
The senior class was dominant on the mound as well. Senior righty Owen Pigati (3-2) started game one and earned the win behind 6.2 innings of brilliant work. He surrendered just one run on two hits with eight strikeouts while holding the Roadrunners to a .087 average at the plate. Fellow senior and relief pitcher Colin Morris provided one inning of flawless relief while striking out one batter. In game two, sophomore righty Drew Hill honored his elders with a complete-game shutout, tossing seven frames and surrendering no runs on four hits with 10 strikeouts. Ian Durgin, Mitch Menard, Toby Scoles and Nate Giefer also appeared in relief in the first game of the day.
 
In summary, on Senior Day, Mines' 2019 senior class produced a combined batting average of .435 while accounting for 20 of the Orediggers' 26 hits. Furthermore, the seniors scored 11 out of Mines' 18 runs and accounted for 15 of the 17 RBI. On the mound, the Orediggers' two seniors racked up a total of nine strikeouts in 7.2 innings while giving up just one run on two combined hits. The Orediggers of honor capped it off with five doubles and two home runs on the day. The seniors' success sends Mines (36-11, 26-9 RMAC) into the RMAC Tournament as the #2 seed, slated to face either CSU-Pueblo or MSU Denver (27-22, 19-17 RMAC).
 
Game One – Mines 12, MSU Denver 8
Despite the final margin, game one of the series was all Orediggers. Mines kicked it off with three runs in the first inning thanks to RBI from Gangwish, VanZale and John Howard. Selsor, Kehe and VanZale all came in to score. The second inning brought a zero to the scoreboard, but the home team continued its offensive roll in the third and fourth innings with five total runs on seven hits. In that two-frame span, John Howard racked up two more RBI. Selsor, Gangwish and VanZale added single RBI of their own, and Gangwish, Kehe, Ciraula and Selsor all came across the plate. That outburst provided Mines an 8-0 lead.
 
Meanwhile, on defense, Pigati proved nearly untouchable. He struck out two batters in the opening frame and fanned another Roadrunner in the second inning. Pigati's no-hit bid continued through the fourth stanza thanks to two more strikeouts, two fly balls and two groundouts. The senior would lose the no-hitter in the top of the fifth due to a lead-off home run, but that would be the only run surrendered by the senior starter. Pigati closed out the fifth inning with two fly balls and a strikeout.  He capped off his Senior Day appearance with a strikeout and fly ball in the top of the seventh before exiting to a boisterous standing ovation from the home crowd.
 
Back on offense, Mines added four runs of insurance through the fifth, sixth and seventh frames. MSU Denver would stage a rally by hitting a grand slam in the eighth inning and scoring three more in the ninth inning. However, Morris would come on and preserve the victory with a strikeout, ground ball and pop fly to second-baseman Ciraula down the right-field line.
 
Game Two – Mines 6, MSU Denver 0
The second game of the day appeared very similar to the second game of Friday's doubleheader. Mines posted a shutout frame to start the game thanks to John Howard's double play from right field. Hill notched the third out with a swinging strikeout. Then, the Orediggers continued on their offensive tear with one run off the bat of Popp in the first and two more runs thanks to John Howard and Joe Popp in the second inning.
 
That 3-0 lead provided plenty of cushion for Hill who grabbed the momentum and didn't let go. The sophomore struck out the side in the second inning and made two more Roadrunners whiff in the third frame. Hill and the Orediggers continued the trend in the fourth inning as they sat MSU Denver down in order. In the top of the fifth inning, the visitors put a runner on third base, but could not push him across. Hill once again struck out the side in the sixth inning and overcame two hits in the seventh to complete the shutout.
 
Mines' final tally was made in the bottom of the fifth and sixth innings. Kehe and Gangwish hit back-to-back one-out dingers to make it 5-0. Ciraula capped it off in the Orediggers' final chance at the plate as he came around to score on a ground ball from Popp. Mines finished the day hitting .406 as a team and slugging .719 with six doubles, one triple and four home runs. The pitching staff racked up 19 strikeouts and held MSU Denver to an overall batting average of .183.
 
NOTABLES
- Since 2016, Mines is 18-4 in the ongoing series against MSU Denver.
- The duo of Gangwish and Kehe have a total of 76 career home runs. They rank #1 and #2, respectively, on the Orediggers' all-time home runs list.
- Kehe also led Mines on the weekend with seven runs, bringing him to 172 in his career which ranks #3 on Mines' all-time list. Selsor currently sits #2 with 176.
- Selsor is already the Orediggers' all-time hits leader. He notched 11 hits against MSU Denver which brings him up to #3 on the RMAC's all-time hits list with 274.
- Hills win improves the sophomore to 7-2 on the season and in his career. He also has a program-record 98 strikeouts this year.
- Mines is just one win shy of matching the program record for wins in a season.
- Gangwish has reached base safely in 37 consecutive games.
- Noah Kuzma notched the first triple of his career in game two of Saturday's doubleheader.
- The Orediggers close the regular season with six series sweeps on the year.
- Head coach Robby Bales is 36-11 in his first season at the helm.
 
WHAT'S NEXT
Mines opens the RMAC Tournament Wednesday in Grand Junction, Colo. Seedings, opponents and game times will be made available at www.minesathletics.com. Live stats and video will be available at www.minesathletics.com.
 
Keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all season long on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.