Mitchell Cutcher
Sports Editor
Omaha walks off in game one win
The Mavericks fell behind 4-0 in the Friday edition of the series against Northern Colorado in the first inning, but came from behind to win 5-4.
UNO’s Caleb Riedel struggled early in the contest, and walks were an issue for the junior left-handed pitcher. In the first inning, the Bears had two batters reach base on balls and a single gave them a bases loaded opportunity just four batters into the game. Caden Wagner opened the game up for Northern Colorado and hit a grand slam to give the visitors an early 4-0 lead.
Following the early setback, Riedel settled into the game and returned to his usual self, striking out 12 batters. The Omaha native didn’t give up a single run the rest of the contest, throwing a total of 7.1 innings. His final stat line was four hits, four earned runs, two walks, and 12 strikeouts.
Omaha quickly responded with three runs of their own in the bottom of the second. Eddie Satisky started the scoring for the Mavericks with a single that scored Henry Zipay. Devin Hurdle plated two more with a single to left field. Omaha tied the game at four apiece in the bottom of the third when Noah Greise doubled down the left field line and Mike Boeve scored.
The scoring in game one slowed down after the teams combined for eight runs in the first three frames of the matchup. The Mavericks scored the winning run with a walk off walk from Boeve. The junior third baseman stepped into the box with the bases loaded and watched four balls in route to the game one win.
Tenney shines in Saturday win
Mavs’ pitcher Preston Tenney was special in the second game of the weekend with a complete-game shutout performance. The junior pitcher helped Omaha solidify the series win over Northern Colorado with a 6-0 win in game two.
Omaha’s offense scored six runs, but Tenney was the story of the game, taking a no-hitter into the seventh inning. Austin Bunn recorded the first hit for the Bears after six innings when he singled through the left side of the infield. Tenney threw nine innings, gave up two hits, hit one batter, walked no one and struck out eight batters.
Devin Hurdle gave the Mavericks the lead in the third inning when he singled up the middle and Matt Goetzmann scored. Noah Griese added to the total with a two-run double in the sixth and stretched the lead to 3-0, the only time Omaha scored more than one run on a play in the second game of the weekend.
The Mavericks further distanced themselves from the Bears in the seventh inning where they scored two more runs. Haiden Hunt singled to center field but was called out trying to stretch the play into a double to bring one run in. Cam Frederick later doubled to score Hurdle. Omaha cruised to a win thanks to another run in the eighth and Tenney’s dominant performance.
Mavs clinch series sweep in high scoring game three
Omaha scored a season-high 16 runs in the series finale against Northern Colorado on Sunday. Eddie Satisky, Mike Boeve, and Cam Frederick all tied for a game high three RBIs in the Mavericks 16-6 win over the Bears.
The Mavs rattled off eight runs in the first two innings of Sunday’s game. Six different players recorded RBIs and made quick work of the Bears’ starting pitcher, Zack Herrick. Herrick didn’t make it out of the first inning and gave up five runs.
After the early lead, Omaha pulled away and eventually run-ruled the visiting team with a two-run single from Satisky. Cooper Prososki received the win in the third game of the weekend and is now 1-0 on the season. This was the Mavericks second win via run rule after run-ruling BYU earlier in the campaign.
Pitcher Harrison Kreiling made his first start of the season after two previous relief appearances in the season. The junior from Omaha Westside went 3.1 innings, gave up five hits, two runs, walked three hitters and struck out two. He did not receive the decision in the Mavericks’ win over the Bears, but his return is welcome as he posted a 3.06 ERA in 2022.
Griese continued his hot streak over the weekend with two hits, one RBI, two runs scored and one walk. The Millard South product totaled four hits, four RBIs, one home run, two runs scored, and one walk during the series. Griese has been a solid performer this season with 13 hits, and 10 RBIs in 14 appearances.
