Yale product throws 1-hitter in Mat-Su win

PALMER - Mat-Su head coach Matt Dorey thinks Chris Wietlispach has sort of a &#8220backwards approach” to pitching sometimes.

Backwards maybe, but it works.

Wietlispach tossed a complete game one-hitter to lead the Miners to a 5-1 victory in the seven-inning first game of a doubleheader against the Alaska Goldpanners at Hermon Brothers Field on Sunday.

Wieltlispach's six walks and Alaska's early 1-0 lead overshadowed the fact the Yale product took a no-hit bid into the final inning.

&#8220I lost the no-no. That hurts,” Wietlispach said.

Alaska had baserunners in all but one inning - Wietlispach struck out the side in the fifth - but was not able to collect a hit until Chris Fox punched a ball into center field off Wietlispach's first offering in the seventh.

&#8220Throwing on four days rest, I didn't have the control I wanted,” Wietlispach said.

Wietlispach walked the bases loaded in the second, and Joe Persichina scored on a past ball to give the Panners the early 1-0 advantage.

&#8220He wasn't real sharp early, but that's kind of him,” Dorey said. &#8220He's effectively wild.”

Wietlispach walked three of Alaska's first five hitters in the second to put himself in quite the jam. He forced Jovanny Bramasco to ground out to shortstop to end the inning.

Dorey said Wietlispach was a little erratic with his fastball, but bailed himself out with the off-speed stuff.

&#8220He pitches backwards a little bit,” Dorey said. &#8220He can struggle with his command of that fastball, works backwards in counts, but he can throw those breaking balls for strikes. He keeps those guys off balanced.”

In the fifth, when he recorded three-straight strikeouts, he made three of Alaska's better hitters look silly. Wietlispach didn't start ahead in the count, but was able to get Mark Thompson, Matt Stevens and Chu Yuin-Chan swinging.

Mat-Su took the lead with three runs in the third.

Joe Ercolano and Travis Coulter posted early singles in the inning, and Ercolano scored on Brown's double to deep right field.

Joey August and Daniel Magness each reached on a fielders choice with the bases loaded to drive up runs later in the inning.

Magness gave the Miners a 3-1 lead when the Panners failed to complete a double play. With one out, Magness hit the ball hard to the left side of the infield. The throw from Thompson, Alaska's shortstop, pulled the Panner first baseman off the bag, just as Magness reached.

Coulter posted a late run-scoring single in the game. Paul Gran and Jay Ercolano scored late runs.

Contact Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.