Behind a strong pitching outing from Sophomore Mason Muellenhoff, the Nevada Union Miners varsity baseball team, beat the Placer Hillmen 5-3 Friday Night in Auburn.
“Huge win for us,” Miners head coach Ted White said.
Muellenhoff got off to a rough start giving up three runs in the first two innings, but was lights out for the rest of the game.
After trailing 3-0 after the first two innings, the Miners went to work in the third inning, starting with back-to-back singles by senior Chase Nye and freshman Ty Malak.
Following Malak’s single, junior Ryder Cleneza reached on an error, which allowed Nye to score. The next batter, senior catcher Lucas Mackey, hit a two-run RBI single to tie the game at three.
With two outs, senior Steele Witchek came to the plate and hit an RBI single to right field, and Mackey came in to score to give the Miners a 4-3 lead after three innings.
The Miners scored the game’s final run when Cleneza singled to right field, driving in Malak to make the score 5-3 Nevada Union.
For the Miners, Nye and Malak both had two hits, and Mackey had one hit but drove in two runs. Cleneza and Witchek added one RBI apiece.
Along with his complete game Muellenhoff gave up two earned runs and struck out four Hillmen.
“Mason pitched a gutsy game,” White said. “He really competed on the bump.”
The Miners have six games left and are currently 4-5 in the Foothill Valley League (FVL). Along with Nevada Union, the Hillmen, the West Park Panthers, and the Oakmont Vikings, which all sit at 4-5 in the FVL.
Placer has the edge with the third and final playoff spot because of tiebreakers; the Miners are fifth.
The final six games will be interesting in the FVL; the Miners play a big three-game series against Oakmont starting today.
“The next two weeks are big,” White added.
Today’s game will be at 4:30 p.m. at Oakmont High School, 1710 Cirby Way, Roseville, CA, 95661.
To contact Sports Reporter LaMarr Fields email lfields@theunion.com.
