One hot Eskymo: Escanaba hurler helps blank Jets 7-0

ESCANABA -- Escanaba's Jared Hanson accomplished something that few pitchers can lay claim to when he threw a no-hitter with an immaculate fifth inning Saturday afternoon as the Eskymos defeated the North Central Jets 7-0 during their alumni weekend varsity baseball clash.

Hanson knew it would be special for the team to pull off a victory in front of former Eskymos.

"With the alumni in attendance and knowing that today was a big game with a lot of former Escanaba players back, we figure we'd get a win out here," Jared Hanson commented.

With eight pitched for eight strikes in the fifth inning, Hanson admitted he was feeling the pressure of the moment

"It was a lot (of pressure) because I knew it hasn't happened much," he said. "To get it done, it's huge pressure. Fortunately, I was able to do it."

Hanson collected 16 strikeouts in the contest with only two walks and one Eskymos' error -- North Central's Alex Naser landed on first in the opening inning with a botched Escanaba play -- separating him from being perfect.

In addition to Hanson's pitching, the Escanaba team executed well offensively.

The Eskymos scored their first run early as Trent Lawson singled to bring Scott Hiller home for the first run of the game. Three runs in the third, another in the fourth and two in the sixth followed.

Jets starter Adrian Mercier had eight strikeouts with six walks while allowing four hits for five runs, two earned. Luke Gorzinksi -- who also had a couple hit robbing catches in centerfield for the Jets -- closed the game for North Central with a strikeout with one allowed hit and two unearned runs.

The opportunity to play a team like Escanaba gives the North Central Jets a chance to face tough competition in preparation for the rest of the season, though coach Jason Mercier doubts they'll see pitching comparable to Jared Hanson the rest of the season.

"You ain't going to beat (Hanson) most nights, so the fact that we didn't hit the ball, that's irrelevant," Coach Mercier said. "I think, Adrian pitched really well... and he kept them off balance.

"I think the guys know where they need to focus the rest of the season. It's the same message and same plan we had. Just get better and improve. You can't really take anything away from this game because we're not going to face any pitchers with that kind of velocity. So, our message is still the same no matter what happened this game."