STURGIS, SD – The Gillette Riders baseball squad took two from the Sturgis Scoopers on Thursday night at Strong Field, 9-1 in game one and 5-1 in game two.
It was Senior Recognition Night, as the Scooper faithful honored Sturgis seniors Dustin Alan, Ridge Inhofer, and twins Kaden & Kelton Olson between games.
The Riders put Sturgis away early in game one, scoring one run in the first, five in the second inning and another in the third to lead 7-1. Gillette scored two more in the fifth to seal the win, 9-1.
Grayson Sargent got the win for Gillette, with Mason Means earning the save. The Riders drew 10 walks, had five hits and left nine on base. Leadoff hitter Seth Petersen went 2-for-5 with three RBIs and two runs scored. Jack Knutson took the loss for Sturgis, who also had five hits and left seven on base.
Game two was a pitcher’s duel, as Scooper ace Kain Peters faced off with Gillette’s Leighton Holden.
Both teams put up a run in the first and the score remained 1-1 until the seventh inning. Peters was pulled from the game with two outs and one on base in the top of the seventh, having hit his maximum pitch count of 105 for the day. Beau Peters came in to relieve his brother and walked the next batter to put two on base. Owen Cass then came in to relieve Beau and Gillette’s bats came alive, as the Riders stroked four straight singles, scoring four runs to give Gillette a 5-1 lead.
The Scoopers put two on base with one out in the bottom half of the seventh but Rider reliever Jamen Kolata shut down Sturgis with a ground out and a strike out to end the game and earn the win.
Gillette (5-0) had 10 hits in game two and were led by Petersen again, who went 3-for-4 with an RBI. Sturgis (5-10) had five hits, left four on base and were led by Dustin Alan, who had a hit and scored a run for the Scoopers.
Sturgis is in action next on Saturday with a doubleheader against Douglas at Strong Field, weather permitting. First pitch is scheduled for 1:00pm.
