Jul 26, 2007 - 08:49:16 CDT
Bismarck Governors pitcher Zach Wentz got off to a shaky start against the visiting Dickinson Roughriders in the first game of Wednesday's Western Division doubleheader.What mattered most to the Governors, however, was how he finished.
The Bismarck righthander gave up four runs on six hits through the first two innings, but pitched one-hit shutout ball through the next four as the Governors came from behind to defeat the Roughriders 6-4 at Bismarck's Municipal Ballpark.
Dickinson later gained a split with a 12-11 victory in the nightcap. The Roughriders trailed 11-6 after six innings, but rallied for six runs in the top of the seventh.
Wentz went six frames in the opener, allowing three earned runs on seven hits while walking three and striking out four.
"I was a little tight right away, but I started to loosen up in the third," Wentz said. "I started to hit my spots and felt more and more comfortable as the game went on."
The Roughriders tagged Wentz for a pair of runs in the top of the first inning. After a bases-loaded walk brought in the first Dickinson run, Dan Berg followed with an RBI single.
The Governors answered with three runs in the home half of the first against Dickinson ace Kyle Schroeder. Wentz tied it up with a two-run double, and Torey Bohan put the Governors on top 3-2 with a run-scoring single.
Bismarck coach Mike Skytland said the three-run first gave the Governors a much-needed dose of confidence.
"That inning was big because it kept everybody in the game, gave us some confidence and showed (Dickinson) that we were going to compete for seven innings," he said.
Wentz agreed.
"Schroeder is their best pitcher, so going out and scoring three runs against him really boosted our confidence," said Wentz, who also went 2-for-4 at the plate and drove in three runs. "It was especially good for me as a pitcher. It helped put the first inning behind me."
Wentz also struggled in the top of the second as back-to-back RBI singles by Ben Herauf and Cole Frenzel gave the Roughriders a 4-3 lead. However, that proved to be the extent of the Dickinson scoring. From there, Wentz faced the minimum in the third, fourth and fifth, and came out of the sixth unscathed after giving up a walk and a single with two out.
"Zach found his stuff in the third. ... The main thing was he found his curveball," Skytland said. "Dickinson is a great-hitting team, but Zach bounced back from a tough beginning and shut them down."
Meanwhile, Justin Connell's RBI single in the third tied it at 4-4. One inning later, Jon Hausauer singled home Cody Erhardt with the go-ahead run.
Later, Wentz plated Hausauer with a single with one out in the bottom of the sixth to make it 6-4.
In the top of the seventh, Wentz gave way to Hausauer, who allowed a two-out single off the bat of Frenzel before retiring Schroeder on a pop fly to second for the final out.
Dustin Wenzel led a 13-hit Bismarck attack with three singles in four at-bats. Bohan and Hausauer added two hits apiece.
Dickinson 220 000 0 - 4 8 1
Bismarck 301 101 x - 6 13 1
Kyle Schroeder, Tyler Steffan (6) and Alex Koppinger. Zach Wentz, Jon Hausauer (7) and Torey Bohan. W - Wentz. L - Schroeder. S - Hausauer. HR - None.
Highlights: Roughriders - Ben Herauf 2-for-4, R, RBI. Tyler Steffan 2-for-2, R. Cole Frenzel 2-for-3, 2 RBIs. Dan Berg 1-for-3. Governors - Wentz 6 IP, 3 ER, 7 H, 3 BB, 4 SO, 2-for-4, 2B, R, 3 RBIs. Dustin Wenzel 3-for-4, 2R. Bohan 2-for-3, RBI. Hausauer 2-for-3, 2 R, RBI. Justin Connell 1-for-4, RBI. Tyler Johnson 1-for-3. Nate Schlosser 1-for-2. Cody Erhardt 1-for-4, R.
Roughriders 12,
Governors 11
Schroeder started the seventh-inning rally with a one-out single. Tyrel Gion followed with a single and Travis Tooley plated Schroeder with a double.
One out later, Tyler Steffan was hit by a pitch and Jamie Ollila made it 11-9 with a two-run single.
Alex Koppinger then tied it up at 11-11 with a two-run double, and Herauf broke the tie with a single.
"That was an amazing inning," Dickinson coach Cory Hansen said. "After the first out, we were thinking it wasn't going to happen for us, but we got a couple of hits and it was like the kids just fed off each other. We were so close to dropping two on the road, but we came away with a split. That's big."
The Governors didn't go down without a fight.
After Daron Olson drew a leadoff walk, Wentz singled, sending Olson to third.
However, Gion - the Dickinson reliever - got Bohan to fly out to left field. He also got the next batter, Jeremy Campbell, to do the same. This time, Olson tried to score from third, but Tooley, the leftfielder, made a perfect throw to home for the final out.
The Dickinson rally followed an eight-run uprising by the Governors in the bottom of the sixth.
Campbell led off with a triple and Tom Seifert followed with an RBI single. Dickinson starter Michael Steve then hit Erhardt with a pitch, and after a single by Olson, Wentz drew a walk to force in a run.
Bohan then stepped up and drilled a triple to deep right center, clearing the bases and giving the Governors an 8-6 lead. Connell walked and Matt Loomis followed with a two-run double.
Loomis later scored on a throwing error.
Frenzel's two-run double and Schroeder's RBI single in the top of the first inning staked the Roughriders to a 3-0 advantage. One inning later, back-to-back errors brought in two unearned runs, extending Dickinson's lead to 5-0.
The Governors broke through in the bottom of the second with Erhardt's two-run single. It was the fourth of four straight Bismarck singles after the second out.
Wentz's bloop single to right in the bottom of the fourth brought in the third Bismarck run, but the Roughriders answered right back in the top of the fifth with Frenzel's leadoff home run.
Dickinson 320 010 6 - 12 14 3
Bismarck 020 108 x - 11 13 2
Michael Steve, Dan Berg (6), Tyrel Gion (6) and Alex Koppinger. Jon Hausauer, Zach Klabo (7) and Tyler Johnson. W - Gion. L - Klabo. HR - Dickinson: Cole Frenzel.
Highlights: Roughriders - Tyler Steffan 2-for-4, 3 R. Jamie Ollila 2-for-5, 2 R, 2 RBIs. Alex Koppinger 1-for-3, 2B, R, 2 RBIs. Ben Herauf 1-for-5, RBI. Cole Frenzel 2-for-5, 2B, HR, 2 R, 3 RBIs. Kyle Schroeder 2-for-4, R, RBI. Travis Tooley 3-for-3, 2B, 2 R, RBI. Governors - Cody Erhardt 2-for-3, 2 RBIs. Daron Olson 1-for-2. Zach Wentz 2-for-4, R, 2 RBIs. Torey Bohan 1-for-5, 3B, R, 3 RBIs. Justin Connell 1-for-4, R. Matt Loomis 1-for-4, 2 B, R, 2 RBIs. Tyler Johnson 1-for-4, R. Jeremy Campbell 2-for-4, 3B, 3 R. Tom Seifert 2-for-3, R, RBI.
Records: Bismarck 28-11 overall, 14-4 Western Division. Dickinson 32-19, 11-6.
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