MITCHELL — The two-out magic worked for and against Mitchell baseball on Friday night at Drake Field.
In Mitchell’s doubleheader with Sturgis, a two-out rally in the third inning of the first game produced seven runs, propelling the Kernels to a 10-0, five-inning win. But in Game 2, it was the Scoopers who were on the beneficial end of two-out scoring, as they plated five of their six runs with two outs in a 6-5, eight-inning win.
The Kernels took a 2-0 lead into the third inning in the first game when Dylan Soulek led off with a triple. After Karter Sibson brought him in on an RBI groundout, Sturgis picked up a strikeout for out No. 2 before four consecutive Mitchell singles.
All told, nine Kernels in a row reached base, picking up seven hits, including a three-RBI triple from Gavin Soukup. Soulek had a double to go along with his triple in the inning and Mitchell plated eight runs in the frame — seven of which came with two outs.
Eight different Mitchell batters recorded at least one hit in the contest, and eight hitters picked up at least one run batted in. Carter Miller was 2-for-2, while Tyler Sanderson was the lone Kernel with a trio of hits as he went 3-for-3 with a run scored and two RBIs.
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“It’s kind of looked at more when there’s two outs because you have to have stacked good at-bats,” coach Luke Norden said of the two-out hitting. “That’s one thing we’ve talked about, too, just making sure we have good at-bats just one after another. … I thought we did a really good job of stacking good at-bats.”
On the mound, Soukup used the 10-run cushion and cruised through five innings, surrendering five hits and a walk but not allowing a run as he picked up his fourth win of the season and lowered his ERA to 3.28.
Up 3-1 in the second game, Peyton Schroder retired the first two batters of the fifth on three pitches, but a pair of errors, coupled with five consecutive Scooper hits helped Sturgis push four runs across to take a 5-3 lead.
Mitchell tied things up in the bottom of the sixth, but when the game went into extras, Sturgis struck again with two outs in the eighth, loading the bases and scoring the eventual game-winning run on a two-out, two-strike wild pitch.
“We just had some instances where guys weren’t ready for the ball and the ball found them,” Norden said. “Just having that grit to want the ball every single time. If we’ve got eight guys that have that attitude, the ball’s going to find the one guy that doesn’t have that attitude at that moment.”
Mitchell committed four errors on the ballgame, and all five of the runs Schroder allowed were unearned.
For Sturgis, Kain Peters picked up the win, going all eight innings and allowing nine hits, five runs (four earned) and two walks while picking up four strikeouts. At the plate he went 3-for-4 with a walk and scored twice and was one of six Scooper hitters with multiple hits, as they racked up 14 for the game.
Lincoln Bates had a pair of doubles and scored twice for Mitchell. Soukup and Hudson Haley each picked up a pair of hits for the Kernels as well.
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After the doubleheader split, Mitchell moved to 7-8 and will take on Sioux Falls Roosevelt in a home contest Monday.
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