Spartans Shut Down Tigers in 8-0 Win

HUTCHINSON — The ROCORI Spartans continues their strong start to the 2026 season, pairing strong pitching with an offense outburst in each of the first two contests.

Against Hutchinson on April 14, it was the latest example of that, with ROCORI exploding for eight runs and shutting down Hutchinson to remain undefeated behind an 8-0 victory in Hutchinson.

The Spartans broke the game open in the third inning, taking a 4-0 lead and not letting the Tigers get anything going on their end. ROCORI blew the game open in the seventh and final inning, scoring four runs in the final frame to bring the game to 8-0.

Cal Heying finished 1-for-2 with three runs scored and one RBI, while Zander Folkerts and Noah Olmscheid each drove in one run for ROCORI.

On the mound, Nolan VanLoy and Reece Kalla combined for a two-hit shutout. VanLoy threw the first five innings, giving up two hits, no runs, no walks and striking out five. Kalla rounded out the strong pitching performance with two shutout innings in relief, giving up no hits, one walk and striking out two.

With the win, ROCORI improves to 2-0 overall on the season. Next up for the Spartans is the first Central Lakes Conference matchup of the season, taking on Alexandria on April 16 in Alexandria.