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Potter manager Ryan Stevens said that he liked how his team handled themselves in the game and noted that they knew what they needed to do entering league play.

“It's business as usual. We kind of know what to expect from our guys. They know what to expect from us. And, you know, I think the focus was there today,” said Stevens.

Solano opened up the scoring in the second inning with a solo shot to right field, but Justin Olson (New Mexico) answered back with one of his own to knot things up at one. Three batters later, Matthew Lee (UL Monroe) gave the Potters the lead with an RBI single.

Lincoln added one in the fifth and sixth innings thanks to runs batted in from Dan Pruitt (Oklahoma Baptist) and Brandon Motheral (Pacific) respectively. The Potters scored two more insurance runs in the seventh thanks to a two-RBI double by Drew Stahl (transfer portal).

Stevens offered his thoughts on the importance of starting league play off with a win, stating that “it's huge and it kind of sets the tone going forward and understanding that, it's summer ball but this is college baseball at its finest and they're gonna have to come with their max effort every night to get wins.”

On the defensive side, Lincoln native Craig Schmich (Minot State) had a strong start, tossing five innings and allowing just one run on four hits while striking out four. Cort MacDonald (Stanford) took things over in the sixth and struggled a little bit in his outing, but recovered well to help preserve the lead.

Mason Hilton (Stephen F. Austin) entered in the eighth and retired the side in order, setting up Jacob Strmiska (New Mexico) for the save opportunity. Strmiska earned the save despite giving up a run and closed the door on the Mudcats to preserve the 6-4 victory.

“I was impressed really, how our pitching staff’s been holding themselves accountable and trying to throw up zeros and give us a chance to win,” said Stevens after the game. “It's baseball, people compete. And I just love that our guys know how to finish.”

The Potters improve to 9-1 with the win and open CCL play up with a 1-0 record. They will be back in action on the road tomorrow for their first ever matchup with the newest team in the league, the Sonoma Stompers. The Potters will stay on the road Sunday as they face the Gold Sox before returning home to take on the Stompers on Wednesday.

You can find tonight’s box score here.