Hawks Hand Gussies First Loss

Hawks Hand Gussies First Loss

Heading into the game, the St. Augusta Gussies were undefeated, with a 5-0 record overall, two of those wins in the Central Valley League. After ten innings, they still had those five wins, but also had one notch in the loss column as the Hawks grabbed the win in St. Augusta, 7-6.

Things were looking good for the Hawks after the top of the first as they scored a run on doubles by Matthew Pennertz and Dan Hansen. Things quickly took a turn as the Gussies put up three runs on four hits and one passed ball. But things went more smoothly for Hawks starter Al Faber after that as the Gussies were kept off of the board for the next three innings.

The Hawks added a run in the fourth inning as Dan Hansen led off the inning with the first homerun of the season for the Hawks, and the score was now 3-2. But in the bottom of the fifth and sixth, the Gussies added a run each inning on two hits each inning. But then, the Gussies made a pitching change, and the Hawks took advantage of three walks, two hit batters, and a single by Brandon Moehrle to score four runs and lead now 6-5.

The Hawks hoped to close the door on the Gussies and brought in Matthew Pennertz from catching to pitching, but a one out walk was followed by a two out double, which brought the runner around from first for the tying run. Things would stay that way until the tenth inning, when pinch hitter Nathan Geislinger led off the inning by reaching second base on a throwing error by the Gussies shortstop. Two outs later, Geislinger hustled all the way from second on Joe Thiel’s infield single to score the go-ahead run and put the Hawks ahead to stay for a final score of 7-6.

This week, the Hawks have two games. The first is this Friday evening as the Nicks head on down from St. Nick for a Central Valley League game in Eden Valley at 7:30. Then, on Sunday, the Hawks travel to Cold Spring to take on the Rockies at 2:00 for another CVL game.

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