PaddleHeads Tally 14 Unanswered Runs in 14-2 Victory
Gatewood Tallies 4 RBIs to Lead Attack in 14-2 Win Over Boise
Missoula, MT- The Boise Hawks would get out on the right foot in game 2 of a 3 game set opposite the Missoula PaddleHeads on Wednesday night. The Hawks would grab an early 1-0 advantage in the top of the first in action at Allegiance Field at Ogren Park grabbing their first lead at any point in the series. Despite grabbing the momentum early, this would be the only semblance of success the Hawks would have on this night.
Missoula's offense would storm out of the gates in the first 2 innings making the slight deficit in the first a distant memory. The PaddleHeads would tally 9 hits in the first two frames to jump out to a 9-1 lead. Missoula never would allow the Hawks to build any momentum on the other side, holding Boise to only 1 run after the first inning in a 14-2 victory.
The PaddleHeads quickly erased the early deficit in the first inning thanks to a 7-run barrage. The first 7 batters that came to the plate would all reach in the inning with 5 singles doing the bulk of the damage. Jayson Newman would kick off the scoring in the frame with a 2-run single that gave Missoula a lead they would never relinquish. After an RBI single from Nick Gatewood, Jared Akins would also chime in with a double of his own to bring home a pair. After the dust settled, 11 batters had come to the dish. Newman finished the night 2-for-4 and Akins was 1-for-4.
After singling home another run in the second inning, Gatewood would put an exclamation point on a fabulous night offensively in the fourth. With Newman on at first, Gatewood would launch one over the wall in right center field to make the score 11-1. Gatewood would finish the night 3-for-3 to go along with a game high 4 RBIs. This offensive production would prove to be plenty for Palmer Wenzel and the rest of the PaddleHeads pitching staff.
Wenzel kept the Boise attack at bay for much of the night earning the win in 5 ⅓ innings of action. The former Longhorn would allow only 4 hits on the night and no earned runs. Wenzel excelled at keeping the ball around the knees in the outing, mainly pitching to contact. Domingo Pena would also see a solid stint out of the pen in 1 ⅔ scoreless innings allowing just one base runner.
The PaddleHeads would wind out the scoring down the stretch thanks to newly acquired catcher Andrew Noviello. The Massachusetts native would drive in a run in his first at-bat with Missoula in the sixth on a sacrifice fly. Noviello would later drive in a pair with a double to right-center to make the score 14-1 in his PaddleHeads debut. Noviello would finish the night with 3 RBIs.
Missoula (47-20) will look to break out the brooms in the series finale against the Hawks (22-46) on Thursday night in the Garden City. Action is set to get underway in the matchup at 7:15 p.m. Hear the call on ESPN Missoula 102.9 F.M.
