The North Platte 80s fell into a big hole right away and couldn’t quite come back as they lost 13-7 to the Garden City Wind on Sunday at Bill Wood Field.

In the first inning, Rob Morosetti hit a two-run double to left-center field off pitcher Ira Clifton to put the Wind ahead. Darius Freeman followed with a one-out single to right to make it 3-0. Two more runs scored when Aaron Izquierdo hit a sacrifice fly ball to right as Carson McCurdy fell making the catch near the wall. Jaxon Hamada doubled to score another run and two more followed as Connor Huzicka reached base on an error by first baseman Zach Evenson.

When it was all said and done, it was 8-0 before the 80s (0-3) had a chance to bat in the bottom of the first inning.

North Platte got a run back in the bottom of the first as leadoff hitter Darrius Bomer scored on a wild pitch by Hamada. But that was all the 80s could muster.

Austin Salemi relieved Clifton in the second inning and Garden City scored two more runs against him.

The Wind led by as much as 12-1 before the 80s finally cut into the lead in the later innings. North Platte scored five unanswered runs in the seventh and the eighth innings to pull within 13-7 in the ninth.

Preston Hitchens held Garden City scoreless in the top of the ninth but the 80s couldn’t do anything in the bottom half of the inning against pitcher Aiden Berggren.

It was the third straight loss for the 80s against defending division champion Garden City to begin the season.

In the season opener on Thursday in Garden City, Kan., the Wind edged North Platte 9-8. The 80s led 7-6 going into the bottom of the fifth, where Garden City scored two runs to go ahead. The Wind added an insurance run in the sixth. North Platte scored one more run in the ninth before falling short.

Remaining in Kansas the following night, the 80s fell 12-5. Garden City went up 5-0 in the first inning and added three more in the fourth to take a commanding lead and North Platte never really got back into it.

Saturday was supposed to be the home-opener for the 80s as they hosted Garden City. But only three innings were played before the game got rained out by a thunderstorm.

Next, North Platte will play four straight on the road in Oklahoma as they take on the Blackwell Flycatchers. Their next home game will be Friday when they host the Trinidad Triggers.

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