Blue Jays baseball sweeps doubleheader against Williston

May 15—JAMESTOWN — The Jamestown Blue Jays scored four runs in the fifth inning to complete the comeback and get a 9-7 win over Williston High School on Monday, May 15, at Jack Brown Stadium.

The Blue Jays sprinted out to a 4-1 lead before the Coyotes scored five runs in the fifth inning on five hits and one error to take a 6-5 lead. Four batters into the bottom of the fifth, the Blue Jays were able to tie the game up before Tyson Jorrisen scored on an error during the next at-bat as they took a 7-6 lead. Later in the inning, the Blue Jays' Thomas Newman hit a single through the left side to push his team in front 8-6. The Jays added another one in the frame to take a 9-6 lead.

Jorrisen led all Blue Jays hitters as he went 3-for-3 with two runs. The Blue Jays struggled defensively in this game as only one of the Coyotes' runs was earned, with the team having six errors.

WHS 7, JHS 9

WHS: 0 0 0 1 5 1 0 — 7 9 3

JHS: 0 1 3 1 4 0 X — 9 11 6

WP: Mason Lunzman, LP: Landen Miller, SV: Jackson Walters

The Blue Jays' Payton Hochhalter smoked a ball over the fence in left field to give his team the 11-1 walk-off win over the Coyotes in the second game of the doubleheader.

"They're all important but right now it's more about keeping the momentum," Blue Jays head coach Jack Bowman said. "We've been playing well, so to be able to stack up the wins, gives us an opportunity to continue to build confidence in our ability to score runs when we need to, pitch when we need to and play defense."

The Blue Jays (14-2, 14-2) scored in each one of the first four innings as they took an early 4-1 lead. Midway through the fifth, Jorrisen came up with the bases loaded and he hit a line drive over the leaping glove of the third basemen and into left field to score one run and push the lead out to 5-1. The Jays added five more in the inning to take a 10-1 lead into the sixth. Two batters into the sixth, Hochhalter hit the walk-off bomb, his team-leading fourth home run of the season.

At the plate, Hochhalter went 2-for-3 with two runs and one RBI and one walk. He also pitched five innings giving up one unearned run, two hits, five walks and striking out six hitters. Hochhalter finished with 105 pitches, the second most he's thrown in a game this season. The Coyotes (12-8, 8-8) stranded nine runners on, including leaving the bases loaded in the fifth inning.

"I just wanted to throw as many strikes as I can, make sure my defense is working out there because I know they're pretty good," Hochhalter said. "So, it's ok to let them hit the ball once in a while. (Max) Fronk calls a really good ball out there, so I just trust his approach to the game, it works out really well."

The Blue Jays are back in action at 4:30 p.m. on Thursday, May 18, when they go to Bismarck St. Mary's.

WHS 1, JHS 11

WHS: 0 0 1 0 0 0 — 1 3 1

JHS: 1 1 1 1 6 1 — 11 10 3

WP: Payton Hochhalter, LP: Micah Larson

Scoring plays:

First inning:

JHS: Mason Lunzman scores on a passed ball

Second inning:

JHS: Brooks Roaldson grounds into a double play, Orr scores

Third inning:

WHS: Connor Ekblad sacrifice fly, Bergstrom scores

JHS: Lunzman scores on an error, unearned

Fourth inning:

JHS: Reagan Sortland RBI single, Jorrisen scores

Fifth inning:

JHS: Jorrisen RBI single, Lunzman scores

JHS: Orr RBI single, Hochhalter scores

JHS: Jacob Webster sacrifice fly, Jorrisen scores, Orr scores on an error, unearned

JHS: Newman RBI double, Roaldson scores

Sixth inning:

JHS: Hochhalter solo HR