Cardinals open season with win, then fall to .500

By DONN ADAMSON / Daily Journal Sports Editor

BELLEVILLE - The Mineral Area Cardinals baseball team finally started their season on Thursday, playing at Southwestern Illinois instead of at home. The Cardinals could not play their home opener last Saturday due to the cold weather, and then could not open the season on Thursday, due to the tarp blowing off of their field, leaving it too wet to play.

Instead the Cardinals traveled to SW Illinois where they won the first game of their doubleheader but lost the second to the Blue Storm.

Mineral Area 13, SW Illinois 6

Michael Hardin gave up only one hit to the Blue Storm which came in the fourth inning of the five-inning, first game (10-run rule). The Cardinals took off like a rocket in the second inning with eight runs, three of which came on a home run by Joaby Sikes.

The Cardinals added three more in the third inning when Tony Spencer led off with a triple and after two more batters walked, Tyler Stahl drove in two of the baserunners with a single. Three Cardinal hits gave the team another two runs in the fifth inning.

Mineral Area 083 02 - 13 11

SW Illinois 000 10 - 1 1

Hitting - Spencer 2-5 (t), Sikes 2-2 (HR), Stahl 3-3, Blankenship 1-4, Scott 2-4, Kimrey 1-3.

Pitching: WP- Hardin 5i 1r 1h 4k 2bb.

SW Illinois 10, Mineral Area 6

In game two, the Blue Storm woke their bats up and paid Jeff Scott back for their first game loss. Scott gave up seven earned runs on nine hits in his four innings on the mound. The Cardinals had plenty of hits with nine, but was unable to piece them together like the first game.

Anthony Patton hit a home run in the fourth inning. Ryan Blankenship hit a two-run homer in the fifth after a double by Sikes and one by Sean Bard.

Mineral Area 011 130 0 - 6 9

SW Illinois 303 200 x - 10 12

Hitting: Miller 3-4 (d,t), Sikes 2-4 (d), Bard (d), Stahl 2-4, Blankenship 1-4 (HR), Patton 1-2 (HR), Kimrey 1-3.

Pitching: LP -Scott 4i 8r(7er) 9h 4k 2bb, Kimrey 2i 2r 3h 1k 1bb.