Gundelfinger homers; lifts Broncbusters over Conqs

By Mike Pilosof

Photo by Adam Shrimplin

Garden City, KS-Chris Finnegan made sure to get his money's worth. 

The veteran skipper, who was furious at a questionable call by umpire Nick Leon late in game one, was tossed for the first time in 13 years. In the end though, it didn't matter, thanks to Quinn Gundelfinger's go-ahead three-run jack in the fifth that gave Garden City a 7-6 victory over Dodge City Thursday afternoon at Williams Stadium. The Broncbusters improved to 15-32-1 overall and 7-18 in conference. 

After starter Guillermo Gelpi was tagged for six runs on five hits in 3 2/3, Finnegan's bullpen held up well. Caden Blair got the final out of the fourth, and Ryan Estey struck out four in three scoreless innings of relief. 

The Conquistadors jumped all over Gelpi in the first, thanks to Kory Schmidt's two-run bomb that put the visitors up, 3-0.

It stayed that way until the second when Gundelfinger drew a lead-off walk; stole second; took third on a Sage McMinn flyout, then scored on Ryan Muniz's sacrifice fly. But two innings later, the Conquistadors extended the lead. Aiden Proctor drove in a run with a sac fly, and Schmidt smashed a two-out, two-run double to make it 6-1.

Garden City answered the call a half-inning later.

After Geoff Marlow reached on an error, McMinn ripped a two-bagger to the gap. Muniz followed with a two-run homer, and Garden City was within two. 

Once Estey did damage control in the top of the fifth, working out of a two-on, one-out jam, Gundelfinger took care of the rest in the bottom half. Dylan Garcia and Marlow stroked back-to-back singles, before the freshman annihilated Diego Dominguez's hanging breaking ball, giving the Broncbusters a one-run edge.

Gundelfinger and Muniz each knocked in three runs for Garden City, which won its second straight game.