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By Devin Virissimo

Henderson, NV- The Coyotes won eight games in a row before having two weeks off to prepare for the first weekend of conference play against the Spartans of Colorado Northwestern. This weekend became a statement for the rest of the conference as they outscored the Spartans 47 to 15 and completed the first sweep of the season.

Excellent and precise pitching took away any momentum the Spartans had and placed the hot bats back in the hands of the howling Coyotes.

In the first game of the weekend, Gabe Gonzalez retired the side and allowed for the offense to do what they have been doing during the first 15 games. Then, on the very first pitch of conference play, Dillon Johnson sends a solo shot out of the park. It was at that moment, the Spartans knew they were in for some trouble. The Coyotes went on to collect three more runs in that inning, only for the Spartans to answer back with four of their own. The Coyotes added two more runs and then placed Todd Danzeisen on the hill to limit the Spartans to only one more hit in the last three and two-thirds innings of the game. Brody Westmoreland had two solo home runs as the Coyotes took the first game 8-4.

AJ Jones was the man on the hill and kept all the momentum in the Coyotes favor by only allowing three hits and one run during the second game of the double header. With Jones doing his part, the rest of the Coyotes kept the bats going with the first four batters scoring. In the second inning, the Coyotes added four more runs and then in the fourth added five more runs. Eight of the nine Coyotes had at least one hit on their way to run-ruling (leading by 10 runs after 5 at bats) the Spartans 13-1.

After a good night's rest, the Coyotes welcomed back the Spartans on Saturday morning as they continued to dominate their opponents. Once again, the Coyotes jumped out to an early three run lead in the first inning. The hit parade continues they added six more runs in the third inning and placed the Spartans in a deep hole. Mikey York pitched three full innings before allowing three runs to come around in the fourth. David Kuzma was put in the game to finish out the inning by retiring three out of the four batters he faced. The howling Coyotes added two more runs to their total before Blake Inouye put away the Spartans and completing the game with an 11-5 victory.

Then in the finale of the first home series, the Coyotes put on a show for their fans and gave the rest of the conference something to think about before they decide to take on CSN. With Sage Diehm taking care of business on the hill, The Coyotes scored early and often. They collected one run in the first and then the second inning went as follows: Tyler Long walks; Jay Martz walks; Jarrett Perns singles; and on the very first pitch, Dillon Johnson air mails a Grand Slam over the left field fence to eliminate any momentum the Spartans might have had left.

Jarrell Latham and Blake Wiggins came around in that inning as well to send the Coyotes up 7-1, but then in the third inning the Coyotes continued the show. Latham gets on due to the fielder's choice, Blake Wiggins doubles and brings Latham home. Jordan Hand then hits a 2-run homer. Brody Westmoreland gets walked and then Drew Newson hits a home run to bring both of them home. The next batter is Tyler Long who takes his very first pitch over the left field fence as well. The Coyotes are up 13-2 until the Spartans add 3 more in the top of the fifth to seemingly eliminate being run-ruled again. That is, until Long and Martz collect a walk each to start off the bottom of the fifth. Then Jarrett Perns sends a deep shot into left center to bring them around and walk-off with the 15-5 victory, completing the sweep and creating a ton of momentum for their upcoming road trip.

Next weekend, the Coyotes will head to Price, Utah to take on the Utah State University-Eastern Golden Eagles.

For more information, check out CSNCOYOTES.com