GOLDEN, Colo. – An explosion of offense by the Colorado School of Mines Baseball team on Saturday helped the Orediggers go 2-0 in their 2024 home openers at Jim Darden Field with wins of 27-6 and 17-5 against Minot State and Colorado Christian, respectively.
 
Every Mines starter that appeared at the plate recorded multiple hits on the day. I-Ly Hsue carried the biggest bat, hitting .500 and slugging 1.500 with two home runs and two doubles on the way to six runs and five RBI. Jackson Woolwine led the team in runs as he scored seven. Keene Tanaka was tops with eight RBI. Hsue, Tanaka, Woolwine, Mason Andrews, Trent Nielsen, Brady Veltien, Ben Leiphart, Evan Bilter, and Tyler Pina all batted .500, or better, on the day. Nielsen and Pina added to the home run total with one apiece. Andrews smacked three doubles in two starts as well. Also notable was Woolwine drawing four walks on the way to a .750 on-base percentage.
 
Oredigger pitchers did their part on the mound too. In addition to batting in the lineup, Folsom (1-0) started game one and earned the win behind 7.0 innings featuring five runs (four earned), seven hits, six strikeouts, and two walks. Carter Gorling started the second game of the day, but did not factor in the decision. It was Ben Schoneman (1-2) pitching Mines to the win in relief. He churned out 3.0 innings of one-hit, shutout baseball. Schoneman needed just two strikeouts compared to zero walks to get the win. Seaver Newby, Nick Lacson, and Peter Lynch contributed additional relief across the two contests. Newby and Lynch walked away with 0.00 ERAs for the day.
 
As a team, Mines (5-6) batted .462 and slugged .782. Seventeen of the Orediggers' 36 hits went for extra bases. Minot State (2-9) and Colorado Christian (2-14) combined to hit .302, but only had four hits for extra bases. Mines turned in a staff ERA of 4.50. Hurlers for the Beavers and Cougars racked up a 23.86 ERA. Oredigger hitters struck out a total of 21 times but also drew 20 walks. Their pitchers fanned 13 and walked three. Back on offense, Mines totals included 44 runs, 36 hits including 13 doubles and 4 four home runs, leading to 40 RBI. The opposition only totaled seven RBI on its 11 runs.
 
GAME ONE: Mines 27, Minot State 6
Minot State leapt to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning. After that, it was all Orediggers. Folsom used a double to score Hsue in the bottom of the first. Hsue hit a three-run bomb in the second and gave Mines a 4-3 lead. Nielsen started the third frame with a solo home run and the home team eventually rolled into the fourth inning touting a 6-3 lead. Brady Veltien highlighted the fourth frame with a three-run double. An error plagued the Beavers for two runs in the fifth. The Orediggers scored five more runs on three hits with one error in the sixth. Eight more runs after the stretch were fueled by a Pina home run and doubles off the bats of Leiphart, Andrews, Woolwine, and Bilter. There was no pregame agreement to any mercy rule, so the game rolled into the eighth inning where Minot State produced zeros on offense and defense. Lacson shrugged off one run and three hits in the final frame to finish the game with a strikeout.
 
GAME TWO: Mines 17, Colorado Christian 5 (7 innings)
Once again, the Orediggers found themselves facing a 3-0 deficit. This time, the hole was dug in the top of the second inning. However, slowly but surely, Mines responded to Colorado Christian's early scoring. Andrews and Wayne Moeck both hit doubles in the bottom of the third to wipe out CCU's 4-0 lead. The Cougars regained the lead with one run in the top of the fourth, but Lynch used one pitch to limit the damage for the Orediggers. After that, the home team did not look back. Hsue plated Leiphart with a double in the home half of the fourth and tied the game 5-5. Schoneman then entered the game and held Colorado Christian to a .100 average over the next three innings. Meanwhile, on offense, Mines notched one run in the fifth before back-to-back five-run frames. A Hsue home run and a three-run double off the bat of Tanaka highlighted the surge. Tanaka eventually walked it off with a two-run single in the seventh to hit the RMAC mercy rule of 12 runs.
 
NOTABLES
- Mines has won three straight games and five of its last six.
- The Orediggers are now 1-0 in the all-time series against Minot State. They are 61-28 against Colorado Christian since 2006.
- Hsue and Nielsen both hit their second home runs of the season. Hsue is up to 13 bombs in his collegiate career while Nielsen has 10 in less than two seasons as an Oredigger.
- Additionally, Pina's home run was the first of his career at Mines.
- Woolwine has reached base safely in all 11 games this season and owns a 10-game hitting streak as well.
- Shoneman earned his first win of the season and dropped his ERA to 2.41 in four appearances and three starts.
- Folsom is now tied for #5 on the program's all-time doubles list. His 45 two-baggers match Mikey Gangwish's production from 2016-19.
- Newby has made four appearances as a true freshman and boasts a 0.00 ERA.
- Lacson's appearance on the mound against Colorado Christian marked his Oredigger debut.
- Grant Johnson played  in his first collegiate game as well, coming off the bench and playing left field in Saturday's opener.
- Bilter's 2-for-2 outing off the bench against Minot State gave him the first hits of his collegiate career.
- Oredigger Head Coach Robby Bales is 122-91 in his sixth season leading Mines.
 
WHAT'S NEXT
Mines continues its home-opening weekend on Sunday with a single game against University of Mary starting at 12 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online or at the field. Live stats and video on the RMAC Network will be linked at www.minesathletics.com and on social media.

Fans can keep up with Mines baseball on "X" (formerly Twitter) and Instagram at @OrediggersBSB. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, "X" and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.