GOLDEN, Colo. – Evan Bilter and Jackson Babcock gave the Colorado School of Mines Baseball team the boost it needed on Saturday as the Orediggers rallied to an 11-9 win against New Mexico Highlands at Jim Darden Field.
 
Bilter finished 4-for-4 with a home run, three runs, and three RBI. He also walked once and stole a base. Babcock was 2-for-4, scored three times and tallied three RBI thanks to a double. Canon Humphreys came a triple short of the cycle as he went 3-for-4 with a single, double, and one home run. That production led to three runs and one RBI. Also notable at the plate were two runs and two stolen bases for Jackson Woolwine. Mason Andrews stole a base as well. Tyler Easter capped the highlights by coming off the bench and hitting a double in his lone at-bat.
 
On the mound, Gray St. Amant started but did not factor in the decision. He left the game after two full innings. Jackson Kay provided 4.0 innings of two-run, seven hit relief while striking out four and walking one. Luke Parker added one shutout inning in what would have been a hold if that statistic were kept in college. Seaver Newby (4-1) collected the decision thanks to 2.0 innings which featured two unearned runs on four hits, one strikeout, and zero walks.
 
As a team, Mines (7-15, 2-3 RMAC) batted .333 and slugged .583 behind three doubles and two home runs. New Mexico Highlands (8-13, 0-5 RMAC) dropped its fifth straight game despite hitting .310 with three doubles and a triple. Both teams suffered in the field as the Orediggers committed three errors and NMHU had five. Mines' pitching staff combined for eight strikeouts compared to four walks. The Cowboys' arms posted four strikeouts and four walks. Saturday marked the Orediggers' first Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference game at Jim Darden Field this season.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED
A shutout first inning from St. Amant and Humphreys afforded Mines a 1-0 lead and a promising start to the game. However, New Mexico Highlands collected four unearned runs as part of a five-run second and put a big damper on the Orediggers' day. Things calmed down after that. Neither team scored in the third or fourth frames. Then, a NMHU miscue on a Mines double steal led to two more runs for the home team. Going into the sixth inning, the Cowboys owned a 5-3 lead.
 
The top of the sixth brought a one-out triple and three straight two-out hits for the visitors. Overall, New Mexico Highlands scored two more runs and carried a 7-3 cushion into the home half. Tragedy struck for NMHU when Tyler Hummel and Andrews reached base on back-to-back errors in the bottom of the sixth inning. Eventually, Ben Leiphart registered a sacrifice fly and Bilter worked a RBI walk. Then, with the bases loaded, Babcock smacked a three-run double and pushed Mines to an 8-7 lead. Stacked zeroes in the seventh inning were a brief pause before two NMHU runs pushed the visitors back into the lead.
 
In the end, the bottom of the eighth inning was the fulcrum of the game. Humphreys hit a one-out double to center field. Bilter stepped to the plate and fouled off his first pitch before the second went out of the strike zone. The third Cowboy pitch to Bilter in the bottom of the eighth inning was smacked up into a howling wind and eventually blew over the scoreboard for a two-run home run. Later in the fame, Easter's double led to a passed ball which brought Babcock across the plate for insurance. However, two runs of insurance weren't needed. New Mexico Highlands made noise in its last breath, hitting back-to-back, two-out singles. But a fielder's choice by the designated hitter made the Oredigger victory final.
 
NOTABLES
- Mines is now 40-32 against New Mexico Highlands since 2008.
- In the same span, the Orediggers are 24-7 when hosting the Cowboys.
- Mines hasn't lost to NMHU in Golden since April 15, 2022.
- Humphreys hit his second home run of the season and his fifth as an Oredigger.
- Bilter owns two home runs in his last three games. He touts two long balls this season and four in his collegiate career.
- With two stolen bases on Saturday, Woolwine boasts 49 in his Mines career which ranks #4 in program history.
- Newby improved to 4-1 on the season. He also has one save in nine relief appearances and zero starts. The sophomore also owns 20 strikeouts compared to four walks and a 4.82 ERA.
- Parker touts a 0.00 ERA and a 0.75 WHIP thanks to nine strikeouts and two walks in five appearances out of the bullpen.
- Oredigger Head Coach Robby Bales is now 153-120 in his seventh season leading Mines.
 
WHAT'S NEXT
The Orediggers and New Mexico Highlands will play a doubleheader on Sunday starting at 12 p.m. Free live stats and video on the RMAC Network will be offered at www.minesathletics.com.
 
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.