Hill#039;s performance give Dragons win in season opener

Published 12:00 am Wednesday, April 2, 2003

PROCTORVILLE - It may have been the season opener, but you could never tell by watching Michael Hill pitch.

Hill pitched a three-hitter and struck out 15 batters as the Fairland Dragons downed the Gallipolis Blue Devils 8-1.

Hill walked just two in fashioning his three-hitter.

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"Mike had a good outing. He threw pretty hard and his curveball was working. There wasn't a whole lot Gallipolis could do with him," Dragons coach Roger Snyder said.

The one Gallipolis run was earned.

Cory McKnight went 3-for-4 with a double and two runs batted in. Zacc Russell was 2-4 and Andy Pittman 2-3.

"Everybody hit in the lineup. That's a good sign. I hope we get that all the time," Snyder said.

Fairland went up 2-0 in the first.

McKnight reached on an error, stole second and scored on Russell's base hit. A balk put Russell at second and Andy Pittman had an RBI single.

The lead went to 4-0 in the third.

Fuller singled to start the inning and McKnight singled and stole second to put runners at second and third.

A pickoff play erased one runner, but Matt Clark walked and Russell had an RBI single. Pittman then singled home the final run.

After Gallipolis got a run in the fourth, Fairland got four insurance runs in the bottom of the inning.

Josh Moore singled, and pinch-runner Nolan Love moved up on a hit by Matt Rowe. Bo Adams grounded out as the runners advanced. Fuller was safe on an error that scored Love, and McKnight had a two-run double.

A throwing error scored McKnight.

The Dragons host Ironton St. Joseph Thursday.

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Robertson, Kenny (5) and Pullins. Michael Hill and Adam Fuller. W-Hill 1-0 (15-K, 2-W, 1-ER). L-Robertson. 2B-Gallipolis: Warren 2; Fairland: Cory McKnight. Hitting-Gallipolis: Warren 2-3; Fairland: Cory McKnight 3-4 (2 RBI), Michael Hill 1-4, Matt Clark 1-3, Zacc Russell 2-4, Andy Pittman 2-3, Josh Moore 1-3, Matt Rowe 1-2, Bo Adams 1-3, Adam Fuller 1-3.