Box Score  | Season Stats

KEARNEY, Neb. -- The Central Missouri Mules jumped out to a big lead then held off a late Nebraska-Kearney rally to post an 11-7 win in the series opener at Memorial Field on Friday afternoon.

The Mules (13-7, 10-3 MIAA) jumped on top with four runs in the first inning. Brad Wilson and Barrett Noirfalise each had RBI singles and Matt Molbury had a two-run double to put UCM in front. The Lopers (13-7, 7-6 MIAA) got one run back in the bottom of the inning, scoring an unearned run on Anthony Pacheco's single.

Dusty Maas scored an unearned run in the second to put UCM in front 5-1 and the Mules tacked on four more in the fourth inning to take a 9-1 lead. Wilson doubled home the first run of the inning. Tony Sandifer had an RBI single as did Noirfalise and Dylan Hanson.

UNK got back in the game with five runs in the bottom of the fifth. Cody Roming had an RBI single, while Danny Droll had a two-run double and Josh Kiger added a two-run single in the frame.

The Mules added a run in the sixth on a Molbury single to center and another in the seventh on a Noirfalise fielder's choice to take an 11-6 lead. The Lopers scored one in the bottom of the seventh on Jayke Brock's single to center, but would get no closer.

Andres Gimeno (1-1) picked up the win in relief allowing one run on two hits in two innings. Starter Jake Heissler was cruising until the fifth, he allowed six runs, five earned, on eight hits in 4.2 innings. AJ Walkenhorst and Zach Davis combined to pitch the final 2.1 innings allowing just two hits.

Adam Peters (3-2) took the loss for UNK allowing nine runs on nine hits in four innings.

Molbury and Noirfalise each drove in three runs for UCM, while those two along with Sandifer, Wilson, Jake Alexander and Trevor Jones all had two hits apiece.

The series continues on Saturday with a doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m. at Memorial Field in Kearney.