CHANDLER, ARIZ. - Despite a flight delay and just 12 hours between their arrival in the desert and first pitch of their season opener, the Madison College baseball team made an early statement with a pair of wins in sweeping the season-opening doubleheader with wins of 7-3 and 12-5. The 2-0 start to the Arizona Spring Trip marks the second time in the last three years, while also improving the #15-ranked WolfPack's all-time record against the Coyotes to 4-2 with three straight wins.

Game #1: #15 Madison College 7, Chandler-Gilbert Community College 3 (8 innings)

One swing of the bat turned a scoreless game into a early Madison College lead when 2018 home run leader Jarrett Scheelk followed fellow sophomore Nick Gile's leadoff single with a tower blast to left field for the season's first runs. The WolfPack took a 3-0 advantage in the top of the sixth when a two-out rally produced a Matt Miller RBI single over the second baseman's head to score Carl Valk. The lead, however, did not hold up as CGCC finally got to starter Brandon Komar, who was replaced by lefty Andy Neu in an inning that produced three runs to even the game.

Still tied at three after seven innings, the game moved into extras and Madison College wasted no time in taking a strong lead. A pair of early walks led to a runners-at-the-corners situation for Jordan Williams, who singled on a bunt back to the pitcher that drove in Valk for the go-ahead run. Adam LaRock followed with a two-RBI double to left, and Walker Jenkins used a sacrifice fly to plate yet another run as the WolfPack scored four times to go on top 7-3. Freshman Taylor Jansen closed out the win with a pair of strikeouts despite putting runners on with two walks.

Gile, a third baseman from Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin, was the lone player with multiple hits as he went 2 for 4 with a run scored. Scheelk and LaRock both were 1 for 4 with two RBI and a run scored, while Valk's 1 for 3 day at the plate produced a pair of runs. Scheelk's home run gives him eight for his career. 

Komar, a righthander from Elkhorn, Wisconsin, went 5.1 innings, allowing three unearned runs on five hits. He struck out eight batters, two shy of his career-high mark, and did not walk a single batter. Neu went 2/3 of an inning with a hit, a walk, and a K, while Jansen (1-0) picked up his first career victory with a pair of scoreless innings. The former Sun Prairie High School hurler allowed one hit and two walks, while striking out two.

Game #2: #15 Madison College 12, Chandler-Gilbert Community College 5 (7 innings)

Game two of the twin bill once again saw the two teams locked in a 3-3 tie, however, Madison College scored runs in six consecutive innings to earn the victory. A hit batter and three walks in the top of the second inning produced a 1-0 lead when freshman Derek Lee's free pass forced in fellow first year Luke Malmanger. In the third, Malmanger, a product of Janesville, Wisconsin, singled in Cam Cratic, and Nick Gile touched home thanks to a Lucas Trebian sacrifice. Once again, the Coyotes tallied three runs in a single frame to even the score, this time using four hits, including two extra base knocks, and a pair of steals in the bottom half of the inning. A wild pitch in the fourth put the 'Pack back out in front, then Henry Henk singled in Adam LaRock and Carson Holin double home two more in the fifth to make it a 7-3 differential. After CGCC got one run back, LaRock picked up an RBI single in the sixth. In the seventh, the 'Pack plated four more on two hits, two walks, two wild pitches, and one error to reach the final tally.

LaRock, a native of Eau Claire, Wisconsin, and a transfer from the University of Iowa, posted a 3 for 4 effort with two more runs batted in and another scored. Holin, a freshman from Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, was the only other player with multiple hits, going 2 for 5 with two RBI and one run scored. Former Waunakee High School standout Derek Lee scored a team-high three runs and drove in another, while Gile racked up two more crosses of home plate. 

Both teams finished with nine hits, however, Chandler-Gilbert (13-12) recorded three errors to Madison College's none. The Coyotes also issued 11 walks and one hit batter.

On the hill, starter Matt Hamilton (1-0) picked up where he left off in 2018 as the team-leader in wins earned his ninth career victory by going five innings and holding CGCC to four earned runs on eight hits and struck out five batters. Fellow second year and righthander Eliot Turnquist logged two innings and set down four batters via the K, while giving up one run on one hit. 

Up Next:

Madison College (2-0) will play its first full nine-inning game on Friday against Paradise Valley Community College (16-9-1). The WolfPack lost a nine-inning affair last year to the Pumas, who own a 4-3 edge in the head-to-head series. First pitch in Phoenix, Arizona, is at 4:00 p.m. CT/2:00 p.m. PT. 

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