UND freshman pitcher Andrew Thome is impatient.
"I like to get the ball back and throw as fast as I can," Thome said. "I like to keep in rhythm. I'm not a fan of games that take forever."
Friday's game against Northern Colorado was definitely to his liking.
Thome tossed a complete-game, nine-inning shutout by registering a career-high seven strikeouts and scattering four hits. The right-hander's dominance led the Sioux to a 9-0 win over the Bears in a Great West Conference game that lasted a speedy 1 hour, 48 minutes at Kraft Field.
Thome's shutout was the first by a Sioux pitcher in the Division I era. UND is in its fourth season of Division I baseball.
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"Andrew's been great all year," said Sioux coach Jeff Dodson, whose team has won four consecutive games. "He continues to get better. He has his breaking ball back now -- he tweaked it a little bit. When he throws three pitches for strikes, he's dangerous."
Thome, of St. Cloud, Minn., had his second complete game of the year. He lowered his earned-run average from 5.88 to 4.37.
"Everything was working and that hasn't been the case all year," said Thome, who improved to 2-5. "My first few starts were a little sketchy with some of my pitches. The addition of my curve is huge. When you get to the third and fourth time through the order, it's big to have that extra element."
The Sioux gave Thome a nice cushion in the second inning with a five-run frame. Sioux leadoff hitter Kris Kwak tripled down the right-field line to score two runs to make it 3-0, followed by a run-scoring single by Tyler Follis and a two-run home run by Jeff Campbell.
Campbell, a freshman first baseman, hit his team-leading seventh home run of the year and extended his hitting streak to 13 games.
Follis, a freshman shortstop from Bemidji, pushed his hitting streak to 11 games.
"I think we got some confidence by scoring 21 runs (against Valley City State on Wednesday)," Campbell said. "Hopefully we can build from here."
Thome's only tough inning came in the fifth when the Bears loaded the bases after Follis mishandled a potential double-play ball. But Thome induced a weak comebacker to the mound from the next batter and turned it into a double play to stop the threat.
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The Sioux continue the four-game conference series with a doubleheader at noon today.
"We need to build off it," Thome said. "It could jumpstart us into the next few weeks."
Miller reports on sports. Reach him at (701) 780-1121; (800) 477-6572, ext. 121; or send e-mail to tmiller@gfherald.com .
