Bulldogs fall 17-7 in opener

Peetz jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the top of the first inning, but it was mostly Merino after that as the Rams came back for a 17-7 win over the Bulldogs on Tuesday in the season opener for both teams.

"We're pretty excited for this year," Peetz coach Darrin Fehringer said. "We've got a lot of young kids, but I think we've got a lot more baseball experience than we've had in the past. We've got a pretty deep team. Today we were missing five or six kids, so we were a little short-handed today, so it'll give some of the other guys a chance to play. I'm excited to see what they can do."

The Bulldogs led 5-0 after the top of the first when the Rams came back with three runs in the bottom half of the opening frame. Peetz extended its lead to 6-3 with a run in the second, when Merino answered with five runs in the bottom of the second for an 9-6 advantage.

Merino added two runs in the third, five in the fourth and two in the fifth. Peetz added its lone additional run in the fourth inning.

Tre Fehringer went 2-for-3 at the plate with an RBI and a run scored to lead the Bulldogs' five-hit attack. Hunter White, Logan Sircy and Zach Holtz also had a hit each. Sircy and Holtz each scored two runs, while Jordan Nelson had a team-high two RBI.

Sircy was the hard-luck loser on the mound after giving up seven unearned runs in one and two-thirds innings of relief work. He struck out four and walked two while giving up one hit. White, Jake Curlee, Holtz and Nelson also saw work on the mound.

Miscues hurt Peetz on the day, as the Bulldogs committed eight errors in the game.