MINES BASEBALL FALLS TO NEBRASKA-KEARNEY, 14-6

GOLDEN, Colo. - The Colorado School of Mines baseball team dropped a 14-6 decision to Nebraska-Kearney in the third and final day of the 2005 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference/Best Western Central Preseason Tournament Sunday afternoon at CSM Baseball Field. The games were nonconference contests.

CSM (6-8) raced out to a 3-1 lead after two innings of play, but the Lopers scored three in the third, five in the fourth and four more in the fifth to assume a 13-3 advantage.

CSM, which committed six errors on the day, was led on offense by freshman second baseman Matt Owens (Highlands Ranch, Colo./Thunder Ridge) who produced two RBI, while freshman centerfielder Nick Walker (Denver, Colo./Wheat Ridge) delivered a pinch hit two-run double. No Oredigger play recorded more than one hit.

UNK (5-8) was led by Travis Kerkman who went 2-for-4 with three runs, four runs batted in a double and a three-run homer, while Ryan Bucher went 4-for-5 with three RBI, three runs, and a double.

Junior Brady Romberg (Aurora, Colo./Grandview) took the loss and fell to 1-3. Ryan Dettman (1-0) picked up the win for UNK as he went seven innings and limited Mines to just six hits.

CSM will return to action next weekend when it hosts Hastings College for a four-game series at CSM Field. The teams will open play with a doubleheader on Saturday at 12:00 pm.

-- OREDIGGERS --