Mandel tosses no-hitter for Larks

By MIKE KESSINGER

Hays Daily News

Making a good first impression isn't always easy, but Jeff Mandel made it look that way.

In his first start with the Hays Larks, Mandel didn't just shut down Elkhart at Larks Park Tuesday night, he threw a no-hitter. The Hays offense did the rest for a 7-0 win.

Through seven innings of work, the Baylor University right-hander dusted off the Elkhart hitters, with 10 strikeouts. Mandel (1-0) walked four — a batter in each of the first three innings, then didn't allow another baserunner until the sixth when he walked Mike Dunn.

“I felt pretty good out there,” Mandel said after pitching in a game for the first time in over 10 days. “I was getting strikes in there and the defense was really involved.

“There is a lot of camaraderie on the team, and we have a lot of good guys.”

Larks manager Frank Leo had initially planned not to pitch Mandel the entire game, but felt with the way things were playing out, it would be fine to let him finish what he had started.

“Outstanding,” Leo said of Mandel's performance. “He kept his pitch count where we wanted it to be. He really had total command. I really like that style he has.”

The Larks got on the board early with two runs in the first inning. J.C Field's single scored Aaron Batlle, and Nolan Reimold also scored as Dusters catcher Keith Jenkins dropped the ball after he tagged Reimold.

“The guys did a good job of getting into scoring position,” Leo said. “We were swinging better.”

In the third inning, Tyler Wasserman scored Warren Schaeffer with a single to make it 3-0.

An inning later, the Larks scored four runs. Mandel and Jason Pfeifer scored the first two runs on an errant throw home by Duster third baseman Jake Stover trying to get Mandel at the plate on a grounder.

Mandel continued to dominate the Elkhart batters, with one strikeout in the fifth, then two in the sixth and seventh.

In the final two innings, Mandel got big plays from his outfielders to preserve the no-hitter. In the sixth, right fielder Billy Sharp chased down and caught a deep shot by Murray Gilbertson. Then in the seventh, former Hays High School player Jason Pfeifer made a diving catch in short left field for the final out.

“The defense has been solid for us,” Leo said. “I think we're really coming together, building this team. They're putting it together.”

The Larks will play host to Elkhart today in a 7:30 p.m. single game at Larks Park.

Sports writer Mike Kessinger can be reached at (785) 628-1081, ext. 130, or by e-mail at sports@dailynews.net.