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BY VAL TSOUTSOURIS
Sports Editor, RTC
Jake Seuferer Colton Ferverda
Baseball
Manchester 9, Rochester 5 (Wednesday): Reiss Gaerte doubled and homered and drove in two runs, and Evan Estep singled and also had two RBIs for the visiting Squires in a win over Rochester at Bob Copeland Field Wednesday.
Freshman Harper Sturtsman reached base three times on a single and two walks, and he drove in a run. Sturtsman also pitched an eight-hitter with no walks and seven strikeouts.
Jake Seuferer hit a two-run homer in the first inning, and Colton Ferverda hit a solo shot in the fourth for Rochester.
Manchester improved to 12-2-1 overall and 3-0 in the Three Rivers Conference. Rochester fell to 8-5, 1-2.
They have lost two straight conference games after a 13-game conference winning streak that dated back to May 2022.
This was the teams’ first meeting since Rochester knocked Manchester out of last year’s sectional. Rochester outscored Manchester 37-2 in two meetings last year, and they led 3-0 after two innings in this game.
However, Manchester scored six runs off Rochester starter Tanner Reinartz in the third, all with two outs.
Gavin Martin singled in a run to make it 3-1. Reinartz hit Gaerte with a pitch to load the bases and then hit Evan Martynowicz with a pitch to force in a run. Then he walked Sturtsman to tie the game.
Payton Jones’ RBI single gave Manchester their first lead at 4-3, and Estep walked to make it 5-3. A run-scoring passed ball called the inning.
“The eight and nine-hole guys got the inning started with base hits,” Rochester coach Cory Good said. “It put us on our heels a little, and they were able to capitalize off some of our mistakes.”
Ferverda led off the fourth with a solo homer. Two outs later, Parker Casper singled and scored on fellow freshman Brady Coleman’s double.
But Manchester scored an unearned run in the fifth on a Zebra error, and Gaerte hit his two-run blast in the sixth.
Paulik and Seuferer had singles off Sturtsman in the seventh, but Gavin Young lined out to left to end it.
“We hit the ball hard right at guys,” Good said. “It’s kind of been what’s been happening here these last couple games. We’re hitting them well, just right at people.
“If we clean that third inning up, it’s a whole different game, but I thought we hung in there well and fought well. We had guys on second and third with two outs with Gavin up, and he hits a shot to the left fielder that he makes a play on. But tying run with Ferv, he’s been swinging it well, we’re right where we wanted to be late in the game.”
Rochester took a 2-0 lead in the first. With nobody on and two out, Reinartz reached on an infield single, and Seuferer launched a two-run homer.
They made it 3-0 with an unearned run in the second. Brady Beck was hit by a pitch. advanced to third when Casper reached on an error and scored when Coleman reached on an error.
Manchester 9, Rochester 5
Manchester 006 012 0 – 9 7 3
Rochester 210 200 0 – 5 8 2
WP – Harper Sturtsman (7 IP, 8 H, 5 R, 4 ER, 0 BB, 7 K)
LP – Tanner Reinartz (5 IP, 6 H, 7 R, 5 ER, 4 BB, 2 HBP, 8 K)
2B – Reiss Gaerte (MAN), Brady Coleman (RHS)
HR – Reiss Gaerte (MAN), Jake Seuferer (RHS), Colton Ferverda (RHS)
