WICHITA, Kan. — The Hutchinson Monarchs opened pool play at the 91st annual NBC World Series with a 13-8 victory over the San Diego Stars in a weather-delayed, 8-inning contest Friday night at Eck Stadium.
Hutchinson built an early 8-1 lead behind a string of timely hits and a strong start from pitcher Ethan Giesbrecht before a weather delay halted the game in the bottom of the sixth inning. The Stars made things interesting with a late rally, but the Monarchs responded with a decisive four-run seventh inning to put the game out of reach.
“We came out hot, stayed focused through the delay, and made sure to answer back when they pushed,” Monarchs manager Casey Lippoldt said. “This group showed a lot of toughness tonight.”
San Diego took a 1-0 lead in the top of the fourth, but Hutchinson quickly answered. After loading the bases in the second, the Monarchs struck for four runs, including a two-RBI single by Drew Bugner and a run-scoring single by Jake Gutierrez. Hutchinson added two more in the third and another pair in the fourth on a two-run double by Keegan Demmer.
The Monarchs led 8-3 when lightning forced a stoppage with two outs in the sixth. When play resumed, San Diego trimmed the lead to 8-5 with a two-run single by Landen Bailey in the seventh.
But Hutchinson came roaring back in the bottom half. With the bases loaded, AJ Mustow cleared them with a three-run triple before Tyler Mitchell drew a walk and later scored on Dylan Bell’s RBI double in the eighth.
Gutierrez finished 4-for-5 with three RBIs and two runs scored. Bell added two hits and one RBI, while Bugner and Demmer each chipped in two hits and combined for three runs scored.
On the mound, Giesbrecht struck out four over five innings of work, allowing just one run on two hits. Brady Pacha closed things out in the eighth with back-to-back strikeouts.
The Monarchs (1-0 in pool play) continue NBC World Series action Sunday at noon against the Dodge City A’s at Eck Stadium.
Follow updates from the NBC World Series on HutchPost.com and Tournament Central on the NBC World Series web-page at nbcworldseries.com.