MOOSE JAW -- The Moose Jaw Miller Express have posted some high-scoring wins over the last few seasons, but Sunday afternoon was something else altogether.
The Express scored 11 runs in the first inning and led 15-0 through two before going on to a 27-2 victory over the Swift Current 57’s at Ross Wells Park in Moose Jaw.
The Saskatoon Berries and Regina Red Sox also again hit double digits while finding the win column at home, with the Berries taking a 13-4 win over the Weyburn Beavers and the Red Sox downing the Medicine Hat Mavericks 11-1.
Moose Jaw 27, Swift Current 2
All told, the Miller Express sent 16 batters to the plate in the first inning, racking up 14 hits. The first six batters all hit singles before a Jackson Martin double broke that streak, and Moose Jaw would have six runs on the board before they recorded their first out.
Three players -- Thomas Soto, Will Edwards and Jackson Yeager -- would have two hits and two runs on the board before the opening inning ended.
Moose Jaw tacked on another four runs in the second inning, and every player in the line-up had at least one hit by the end of the frame, with seven players having two hits.
The Express weren’t done there, either, as they tacked on another eight runs in the fifth.
Everyone had a good day at the plate, but Soto would end up 4-for-5 with two doubles, six runs scored and three RBI, while Austin Gurney also recorded four hits and Edwards knocked in four runs while going 3-for-3. Jackson Martin scored three runs and knocked in four, Eric Deringer and Abe Ahlberg each hit a home run.
Jose Ayala hit a solo home run for Weyburn, Wilmer Henriquez had a pair of hits.
Landen Zehr allowed a single run on three hits over four innings in his start for Moose Jaw, Josh Bourbeau tossed three shutout innings to earn the win.
The less said about Swift Current’s pitching numbers the better, but Nkosi Didder took the loss, giving up 10 runs on 10 hits while getting a single out in the first.
Moose Jaw is now 7-8 and sit fourth in the East Division, Swift Current fell to 3-12 and are sixth.
Saskatoon 13, Weyburn 4
The Berries fell behind 4-2 in the third inning but took the lead for good with three in fourth before tacking on another four runs in the fifth as they pulled away.
Ethan Menard had another solid outing for Saskatoon, going 4-for-5 with two runs and two runs batted in to boost his batting average .456, second best in the WCBL. Mason Roell had a single hit but knocked in four runs, while Ethan Murdoch was 2-for-2 with two runs and two RBI.
Brayden Mayencourt led Weyburn with a 2-for-4 effort that included a run scored and an RBI.
Robert Bonilla was the winning pitcher even with some bad luck with errors, allowing four runs, none earned on five hits over five innings while striking out four.
Gram Middleton took the loss, giving up five runs on six hits over 3 ⅓ innings and striking out six.
Saskatoon improves to 13-2 with their sixth straight win and are first in the East, Weyburn falls to 4-10 and are fifth in the East.
Regina 11, Medicine Hat 1
Things were close in the early going, but Regina began to pull away with a three-run fourth inning to take a 5-0 lead and then removed all doubt of a win with a five-run eighth.
Riley Bender had a single hit on the afternoon for the Red Sox but made it count, belting a grand slam to key Regina’s big eighth inning. Justin Simard went 3-for-4 with two runs and an RBI, while James Wright also had a pair of hits and crossed the plate twice.
Jeremy Freeman Jr. and Tyler Vanneste each had a pair of hits for Medicine Hat.
Colton Anderson picked up the win for the Red Sox, giving up a single unearned run on five hits over five innings, striking out five. Ayden Page tossed three innings of shutout relief and also struck out five.
Max Hudlow was the losing pitcher, allowing five runs on nine hits over 3 ⅔ innings.
Regina improved to 9-5 with their third-straight win and sit third in the East, Medicine Hat fell to 11-6 and remain in second, a half-game up on the Red Sox.
