FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT Evan O’Kelly Director of Communications O: (406) 657-2130 E: evan.okelly@msubillings.edu Saturday, April 16, 2016 Cooper shines with 13 Ks, ‘Jackets rally in Game 2 for doubleheader split
MSUB junior Cody Cooper strikes out a GNAC single-game season-high 13 batters in a tough 2-1 Game 1 loss, but the ‘Jackets rally for a big 8-4 win in Game 2 in a doubleheader split with Northwest Nazarene Saturday. BILLINGS, Mont. – In perhaps the best start of his career with the Montana State University Billings baseball team, junior Cody Cooper struck out a Great Northwest Athletic Conference 2016 season single-game high 13 batters but the Yellowjackets dropped his start against Northwest Nazarene University and settled for a doubleheader split at Dehler Park on Saturday. MSUB stranded 13 baserunners in Game 1, and NNU made a solo home run by Josh Hatfield and an RBI-single by Brett Nielsen in the top of the third inning stand in a 2-1 victory. Facing one of the top pitchers in the conference in righthander Colton Loomis in Game 2, MSUB broke out of its slump at the plate and rallied for a huge 5-run third inning in an 8-4 victory. The Yellowjackets moved to 18-16 overall on the year and remain one game below .500 at 12-13 in league play with the split. NNU is now 21-15 on the season and is 16-10 in conference play.
“We just really talked about believing in ourselves, and trying to give ourselves more scoring opportunities,” said MSUB head coach Rob Bishop. “We had five or six really good at bats there in Game 2 and put the barrel on the baseball. We were due for an inning like that, and after that I thought we just relaxed.” Game 1 – Northwest Nazarene 2, MSU Billings 1 Cooper was nearly untouchable, as he scattered eight hits over eight innings and allowed just the two runs with 13 strikeouts and five walks. “Coop was awesome today, again,” Bishop said. “He has been really good all year, and he deserved to win today.” Offensively the ‘Jackets had the bases loaded two times and had multiple baserunners in six innings total, but a sacrifice fly by Corey Morris in the bottom of the sixth inning proved to be the lone run in support of Cooper. NNU starter Jaramy Jacobs earned the victory, as he had seven strikeouts and gave up four hits with four walks in six innings. Blake Mitchell and Ryan Nyborg combined to blank MSUB the rest of the way, with Nyborg earning his GNAC-leading seventh save of the year. Luke Reinschmidt led off the sixth inning with a triple off the base of the wall in center field, and Morris elevated a fly ball to right to bring him home and make the score 2-1. Cooper worked around a one-out hit batter in the first, as Morris, Colter Sternhagen, and Kevin Toon turned an inning-ending double Cody Cooper had a career-high 13 strikeouts Saturday, the play. highest total in a game this season by any pitcher in the GNAC.
MSUB put runners on second and third with two outs in the bottom of the first, but a sharp ground ball by Reinschmidt was snagged by NNU
first baseman Brady Baker to end the frame. Facing another jam in the second with the first two batters reaching base, Cooper focused in and struck out the side. The ‘Saders got to the right hander in the third, as Hatfield led off with his first home run of the year on a high fly ball down the line in left field. Nielsen followed with a one-out single to right before Cooper ended the inning with a strikeout and a popup. Loading the bases with only one out in the bottom of the third, Jacobs wiggled out of the jam with a pop-out and a strikeout. Landon Peterson mowed down a baserunner in the seventh, firing a strike to Morris at second and helping Cooper get out of trouble and return to the mound in the eighth. Alec Leighton had a pinch hit single, and Myles Berkram and Tanner Watson drew back-to-back walks to load the bases in the bottom of the inning, as the ‘Jackets had one more attempt to give Cooper the lead. Nyborg coaxed a pop-out and
a fly-out to end the frame however, as MSUB left the bases loaded again. NNU’s right hander retired the side in order in the bottom of the ninth, and the ‘Jackets lost despite Cooper’s best start of the year. Game 2 – MSU Billings 8, Northwest Nazarene 4 Peterson punched a two-out base hit into center field in the third inning, and the next five Yellowjackets all reached base as MSUB scored five times in a momentum-shifting inning. Kyle Durbin, Adam Cox, and Morris all had RBI-singles in the inning, and Reinschmidt capped off the rally with a two-run double off the top of the wall in center field. “Luckily enough I was able to get something late in the count, and he left a slider up,” Reinschmidt said on his double off of Loomis. “I just tried to put a good swing on it because I hadn’t been swinging the bat well lately. I hit that one well, and everything is starting to click.” Reinschmidt’s double came on an 0-2 pitch from Loomis, the same count the senior faced as in his game-winning home run off of Loomis in a 3-2 win over the Crusaders behind Matt Hape on March 11 in Nampa, Idaho. Reinschmidt’s blast smashed into the top of the wall in center, as he barely missed a home run to the deepest part of the park.
Senior Luke Reinschmidt went 3-for-8 with two runs and two RBIs to help MSUB split a doubleheader Saturday.
Loomis entered the day having allowed just 14 runs in 60 1/3 innings, and took the loss as he gave up eight on 10 hits with four strikeouts and a walk in five innings. “Loomis is a good pitcher, and he has proven that all year,” Morris commented. “We just stuck with our approach, found barrels, and balls fell in.”
Hape earned his third straight win for the ‘Jackets, as he struck out seven and did not walk a batter in five innings. Cox shut the door over the final two innings, striking out three Crusaders and giving up just one hit to complete the win. Ryan Johnson led off the game with a triple off the wall in right-center field, and came around to score on an RBI-double by Hatfield. Peterson again saved the day by catching Hatfield stealing third, as the ‘Jackets limited the damage to a single run. Loomis cruised through the lineup his first time, using a double play in the first to help set down the first eight batters he faced before Peterson’s rally-inducing single. The ‘Saders responded to the five-run inning with a single run in the fourth, as Tucker Campbell lined a sacrifice fly into right field to score Nielsen and make it 5-2. Peterson laid down a picture-perfect safety squeeze sacrifice bunt in the bottom of the frame however, as MSUB quickly got the run back and led 6-2.
Johnson doubled to start the fifth and scored on a pair of wild pitches, and Davis followed with his GNAC-leading 11th home run of the year as the Crusaders cut the deficit to two runs down 6-4. Sternhagen delivered a huge two-out, two-run single in the bottom of the inning as MSUB once again got the runs back and pushed its advantage back to four runs. Cox worked around a two-out single in the bottom of the seventh, overpowering NNU’s hitters with his fastball and closing the door. Davis was 3-for-4 in Game 2 for NNU, while Reinschmidt, Durbin, and Sternhagen each had a pair of hits and drove in five of MSUB’s eight runs. THE BUZZ: Cooper was selected as the St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Day…the previous GNAC single-game high for strikeouts this year was 12 by Western Oregon’s Brady Miller and Concordia’s Harrison McGhee…Cooper continues to lead the GNAC with 72 strikeouts on the year, and is now seven strikeouts away from tying the MSUB single-season record of 79 (Brady Muller, 2015)…it was Cooper’s fourth-career double-digit strikeout performance, and the 13 whiffs were the most in his career…Cooper moved to No. 3 in MSUB history in strikeouts with 130 in his two-plus seasons…with seven putouts, Toon is now one shy of tying MSUB’s career mark of 623 (Blake Loran, 2011-15)…MSUB did not make an error in the doubleheader while NNU had just two in a defensively sound afternoon…the season series between the teams remains even with each having won three times. NEXT UP: The series concludes on Monday with a 1 p.m. doubleheader at Dehler Park. Live video with play-by-play commentary and live statistics will be available through MSUB’s Stretch Internet Portal here. --@MSUBSports | #JacketNation--