Red and Black Series Update

Every year, while The Jones and football facilities are bustling with action, the Red Raiders baseball team is having their fall camp to get ready for the spring season. Fall camp always culminates with a 5-game scrimmage series between 2 sides of the team, the Red vs Black series. The games are open to the public, and allow the fans to see what the upcoming years team may look like as well as give the players some in-game action among teammates.

This years series is a bit more intriguing, with the high amount of players that have moved on. Familiar faces like Gutierrez, Moseley, and Neslony, who helped the team to a pair of trips to Omaha in a 3-year span are gone. Upcoming stars like Shetter, Gingery, and Lanning look to give the Red Raiders a force on the mound against a tough conference.

Game 1 - Red Wins 8-5

The first game featured a marquee pitching matchup with Erikson Lanning pitching for the home Black team and Ryan Shetter throwing for the visiting Red team. Shetter would begin the game with 3 scoreless innings, but senior Ryan Long had a 3-run shot in the 4th to stop the no hitter. Shetter would finish the day with 5.0 innings, 4 strikeouts, and only 2 hits. Junior Michael Davis would be the star of the game for the Red team, going 4 for 4 and 2 walks in 6 plate appearances. He had 3 RBI’s, 2 runs, and was a home run short of hitting for the cycle.

Game 2 - Black blanks Red 5-0

Pitchers Davis Martin and John Henry Gonzalez kept the game close, with no runs scored until the 5th, when team Black scored 3 runs. Junior outfielder Connor Beck and freshman infielder Brian Klein each had 2 RBI’s in the game, and Hunter Hargrove drove in the other run. Martin ended up pitching 3.2 innings with a strikeout and 2 hits, while Gonzalez pitched 4.0 with 3 strikeouts and just a single hit. Junior pitcher Jacob Patterson got the win, pitching 3.1 innings with a single hit allowed and 3 strikeouts.

Game 3 - Black routs Red 7-1 to take a 2-1 series lead

Team Black used an offensive explosion in this game, scoring 7 runs across 3 innings, including 3 each in the 4th and 5th innings. Steven Gingery pitched for Black in a winning effort, with 5 innings pitched, allowing 3 hits and striking out 4. Ty Harpenau started for Red, matching Gingery’s 4 strikeouts across 4 innings, but allowed 3 runs on 3 hits. Michael Davis had a multi-hit game for Red, with a solo shot in the 7th for their only run of the game. For Black, Connor Beck and Clay Koelzer had multi-hit games as well as the newcomers continue to play well.

Game 4 will be Friday afternoon at 2:00pm with the series finale on Sunday at 2:00 as well.