PUEBLO, Colo. – The Colorado School of Mines Baseball team dropped the first game of its doubleheader on Sunday at CSU Pueblo by a score of 5-2 before bouncing back with a 4-3, extra-innings win to split the day and the series at Rawlings Field.
 
Pitching was the story of the day. Mines' win in the finale saw Alex Honeyman make the first start of his collegiate career. He lasted 6.1 innings, giving up just three runs (two earned) on four hits with four strikeouts and zero walks, but would not factor in the decision. Marcus Lee (2-1) earned the win in relief thanks to two flawless outs on seven pitches. Matthew Dobberthien (1) grabbed the save with his only flawless inning, also using just seven pitches while striking out one. Game one of the day featured Ben Schoneman (1-2) starting on the mound. He provided a 5.0-inning gem before taking the loss on three runs (two earned) off three hits. Schoneman struck out six and walked one. Jackson Bakovich also appeared in relief.
 
At the plate, Danny McDermott was the most efficient Oredigger. He hit .500 on the day thanks to two hits including a triple while scoring three times and slugging 1.000. McDermott also walked twice and was hit by a pitch once resulting in a .714 on-base percentage Caden Bonds started both games and batted .429 on three hits with one run and two RBI. Mason Andrews and I-Ly Hsue scored as well. Andrews also notched a double. Adam Houghtaling and Jackson Woolwine accounted for the other two RBI. Also notable was Ryan Vermeer hitting .500.
 
Mines (9-15, 5-7 RMAC) overcame three errors across two games by stacking up 15 hits and earning seven walks at the plate. CSU Pueblo (12-15, 9-3 RMAC) did not commit a single error in 15.0 innings, but only had eight hits with one walk on offense. Three of the ThunderWolves' hits went for extra bases and they were 3-for-3 on stolen bases. The home team even outscored their guests on the day, 8-6, but one walk and 11 strikeouts by the Oredigger pitching staff limited the damage. CSU Pueblo's pitchers also struck out 11 batters, but seven walks and six wild pitches were too much to overcome.
 
GAME ONE: CSU Pueblo 5, Mines 2
The arm of Schoneman carried the Orediggers through the first five innings of Sunday's doubleheader. He didn't surrender a single hit until the third inning, and only allowed one other hit in five shutout frames. Meanwhile, Houghtaling drove in Andrews in the top of the third, and Bonds hit a single to score Hsue in the top of the sixth. That gave Mines a 2-0 lead before disaster struck in the bottom of the sixth inning. A leadoff single and two hit batters loaded the bases with zero outs. Bakovich came out of the bullpen to limit the damage, but momentum was already rolling in favor of the ThunderWolves. They scored five runs on two hits and one error to take a 5-2 lead. With three outs remaining for the Orediggers to make the comeback, five runs was all CSU Pueblo needed to get the win.
 
GAME TWO: Mines 4, CSU Pueblo 3 (8 innings)
Through the first six innings, the series finale was a near carbon-copy of the first game of the day. The Orediggers squeezed out two runs in the top of the second thanks to a one-out single from Bonds and a two-out single from Tanaka. McDermott and Bonds both came across the plate. Honeyman pitched brilliantly and overcame an error in the bottom of the second frame to avoid disaster and hold the ThunderWolves to one run. The score remained 2-1 after the third inning as Mines' defense shrugged off a leadoff error and ended the frame on a double play as Andrews snagged the fly-ball in right field and sent it to the plate, saving a run a recording the outfield assist.
 
Just like game one of the doubleheader, Mines found an insurance run in the top of the sixth inning. McDermott was the leadoff batter and was hit by a pitch. He ended up scoring on a series of wild pitches. Also like game one of the doubleheader, disaster appeared imminent in the bottom of the sixth. CSU Pueblo hit a one-out double and a two-out home run to tie the game, but Honeyman proved unfazed and got the final out to keep the score 3-3. He and Lee teamed up for a shutout seventh frame.
 
McDermott started the eighth by working a walk. He went to second base on a wild pitch. Bonds' groundball moved McDermott to third. After Alex Dunagan earned a pinch-hit walk, another wild pitch brought McDermott in to score. That provide the Orediggers a 4-3 lead. Dobberthien strolled from the bullpen to the mound for the bottom of the eighth frame. He proceeded strike out the leadoff hitter on three pitches, get a two-pitch foul out, and close the game with a one-pitch groundball.
 
NOTABLES
- Mines is now 3-2 against CSU Pueblo in 2023 after defeating "The Pack" in a non-conference game during the RMAC Round-Robin weekend.
- Sixteen of the last 17 games between the Orediggers and ThunderWolves have been played in Pueblo, Colo. Mines and CSU Pueblo have not played in Golden, Colo., since 2018.
- Dobberthien's save on Sunday was the first of his Oredigger career.
- So far this season, Lee is 2-1 with two saves and a 3.54 ERA in seven appearances thanks to 13 strikeouts and three walks in 20.1 innings of work out of the bullpen.
- Since March 18, Danny McDermott is 12-of-20 (.600) at the plate with eight runs and seven RBI on two doubles, one triple, and one home run.
- McDermott has also reached base safely in 16 straight games.
- Caden Bonds is 5-for-9 at the plate in his last four games.
- Head Coach Robby Bales improved to 104-75 in his fifth season leading the Orediggers.
 
WHAT'S NEXT
Mines' next action is a four-game home series against New Mexico Highlands starting Friday, March 31, at 6 p.m. at Jim Darden Field. Tickets can be purchased online or at the gate. Free live stats and video on the RMAC Network will be offered at www.minesathletics.com.
 
Fans can follow Mines baseball on Twitter at @OrediggersBSB. They can also follow all of Mines Athletics on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at @MinesAthletics, and online at www.minesathletics.com.