Express heat up against Sidney

WESTCO Express' Joe Moran gets ready to make contact with the ball during Tuedsay's Game against Sidney. (Photo by Jeff Fielder).

BY: JEFF FIELDER, Star-Herald Sports Editor

Published: Tuesday, June 30, 2009 11:39 PM CDT

WESTCO Express assistant coach Chris Urwiller had some simple instructions for his team before its game Tuesday against Sidney: play intense early and often.

The Express players certainly followed through with that plan, as they exploded for seven first-inning runs and continued to excel after that en route to dropping Sidney 13-1 in just four innings at Cleveland Field.

The victory gave WESTCO its fifth win in the last six games and lifted its season record to 16-8.

“I told our guys that we’ve got to get on them early and keep them down,” Urwiller said. “We did our job. We took care of business in the first inning, and we didn’t let up after that. We kept our intensity up the entire game, and that’s pretty hard to do in a game like that.”

It was actually Sidney that got on the scoreboard first. Austin Miller’s single scored Tyson Herrera. Sidney threatened to take an even bigger lead, putting runners on first and third with two outs. James Persinger, however, recorded a strikeout for the final out, keeping Sidney’s lead at 1-0.

That wouldn’t be nearly enough, however, as WESTCO’s offense sparkled in the bottom half of the first inning. Eric Moreno scored the Express’ first run, and moments later Jordan Ramirez’s single knocked in Joe Sanchez. Also scoring in the inning were Ramirez, Andres Morales, Ty Dunkel, Andrew Fulk, and Persinger. WESTCO finished the inning with nine hits.

“We hit really well today,” Urwiller said. “That really stuck out. We had a lot more extra base hits than what we usually have.”

WESTCO also received a solid pitching performance from Persinger, and the defense came up big as well, holding Sidney scoreless the last three innings.

After Ramirez scored in the second inning to give the Express an 8-1 advantage, WESTCO put the game away two innings later, plating five more runs. After Fulk singled to drive home Morales, Joe Moran registered perhaps the play of the game, an inside-the-park home run. His drive deep into right field also scored Dunkel and Fulk, pushing WESTCO’s lead to 12-1. The game ended three batters later, when Ramirez singled to score Moreno.

“I thought we stayed consistent throughout the game,” Urwiller said. “We played good defense, we threw strikes, and we put the ball into play.”

The Express will try to maintain their momentum today when they host Alliance at 5 p.m. It will be the first meeting of the season between the two junior legion squads.

“Things are going really well for us right now,” Urwiller said. “Hopefully, we can keep improving and playing well.”