Three LeTourneau pitchers struck out nine and the offense capitalized on five errors en route to an 8-5 win over Castleton on Monday night at Conrad-Vernon Field.

The YellowJackets (7-0) scored in the first three innings including three in the first inning en route to the win. For the game, LeTourneau was only retired in 1-2-3 order just once in the win. Four YellowJackets – senior Chris Bertram, junior Ryan Bertram, freshman Kyle Jacobs and sophomore Sean Sellers each had two hits. For Ryan Bertram, it was his sixth multi-hit game in seven contests and Sellers has reached base in all seven contests.
 
In relief of starter sophomore Josh Gimre, LeTourneau freshman Canaan Klaassen held the visitors in check, scattering just two hits in 4 2/3 innings of work and striking out three for the win. 
 
The Spartans (1-1) – who were just playing in their second game of the season after making the trek from Castleton, Vermont – did most of their offensive damage in the fourth inning when they scored four times. With the four run effort, they cut the LeTourneau lead to 5-4 before the YellowJackets retaliated with two in the sixth and another run in the eighth.
 
LeTourneau scored three in the first as a result of four errors by Castleton and two hits for the early 3-0 lead. They scored one more in the second when senior Bryce Griffin came in on a passed ball for a 4-0 advantage. A RBI single by junior Caleb Pritchett in the third put LeTourneau ahead 5-0. The Spartans came back in the fourth on just one hit but still managed to score four times to trim the LeTourneau lead to 5-4.
 
A RBI double and a RBI single by Ryan and Chris Bertram, respectively extended the LeTourneau lead 7-4. Chris Bertram drove in another in the eighth on a RBI double scoring senior Jordan Argabright to make the score, 8-4. A sacrifice fly with the bases loaded by the Spartans was the final run of the contest.
 
The two teams will wrap up the series with a  6 p.m. tilt on Tuesday, Feb. 25 at Conrad-Vernon Field.