A big fifth inning propelled the Bluejays to a 7-1 victory over the Tomahawk Hatchets at Athletic Park Tuesday night.
Down 1-0 in the bottom of the fifth inning, Kole Meyer was hit by a pitch, and Ty Belfiori and Ryan Golisch drew walks to load the bases. Nick Bowe clubbed a double to left, driving in Meyer and Belfiori for Merrill’s first two runs. Mason Smith then walked to reload the bases. Following a Tomahawk pitching change, Trey Seubert walked to force Golisch home from third. Bowe then scored from third on a wild pitch. Zach Anderson reached on an error, scoring Smith in the process. Vinnie Galella capped off the six-run inning with a single to center that scored Seubert.
With the Bluejays now up 6-1, Bowe notched one more RBI in the bottom of the sixth, driving in Belfiori on a base hit.
Belfiori earned the win for Merrill. He pitched four innings, surrendering one run, four hits, striking out four and walking one.
The Bluejays collected nine hits in the game. Duginski, Bowe and Belfiori each had two hits to lead Merrill. The Bluejay defense was sure-handed, committing not a single error in the game.