By Hannah Hall – Staff Writer
All eyes were on Andrew Mitchel as he commanded the mound and set an impressive career-high 18 strikeouts which set the pace for a 4-1 San Jose State (8-5) victory against Air Force (6-4).
The senior pitched a one-run complete game lowering his ERA drastically from 9.00 to 5.57.
The left hander had a rocky start last week in the conference opener where he walked seven batters and was relieved after three innings.
“I focused a lot on keeping my hands behind the ball because when I keep my hands behind the ball it goes where I want,” Mitchel said. “It was just a simple adjustment, basically just moving my fingers a little bit.”
The powerful performance on the mound provided a spark amongst the rest of the team.
“It’s a big confidence booster not only for myself but for my team,” Mitchel said. “When I take the mound I feel a lot of energy behind me.”
The Spartans struggled to get on the scoreboard stranding 10 runners on base in the first five innings.
The Falcons responded with their first hit in the sixth. Drew Wiss came in with the bases loaded in the sixth and drove in a run on an RBI fielder’s choice, tying the game at one.
Junior outfielder Kellen Strahm continued to prove that he is one of the best hitters in the Mountain West.
Strahm was able to break the tie in the eighth inning when he smacked a 2-RBI single to plate sophomores Connor Konishi and Jack Collette.
“I just tried to sit on it and hit it to right field,” Strahm said. “Just put it in play.. that’s all we need to do to score runs.”
The center fielder leads the team in batting average, slugging percentage, runs scored, hits, walks and stolen bases.
An eighth-inning rally and Mitchel’s 18 strikeouts set the tone for the rest of the series against Air Force.
“I was really happy to see him (Mitchel) pitch the way he was capable of pitching. He earned the right to stay in that game. That’s a guy putting the team on your back,” head coach Brad Sanfilippo said. “We did a really good job of overcoming in the eighth inning.”
Senior pitcher Tevin Cadola will take the mound for the Spartans in the second game slated at 2 p.m. on Saturday.
Follow Hannah on Twitter @hannah_halll