When Tooele Legion gets their bats going they continue to stay hot most of the game. Tooele jumped out quickly in the first inning and that must have set the tone because Tooele scored in four of the total seven innings for a 15-5 beating of the Spartans of Murray.

Tooele received contributions from nearly everybody in the lineup Monday night at Ken Price Field in Murray. But No. 9 hitter Jake Witkowski and Matt Gochis and Colton Barkdull at the top of the lineup did most of the damage. All three hitters earned three hits each on the night while batting in four runs between the three batters in the Tooele rout.

Tooele got it going early in the first inning with some timely hitting and a little help from Spartan starting pitcher Derrick Wollschleger not finding the strike zone. A one-out single by Barkdull led things off while Taylor Hunt and Chase Banks followed with walks to load the bases. With two outs, Payeton Reed poked a single through the left side to give Tooele a 2-0 lead.

The Buffs almost gave the runs right back by allowing the Spartans to load the bases with a single and a pair of walks but Barkdull came through on the mound for Tooele. Barkdull was able to get out of the bases-loaded jam by striking out Michael Turney to end the threat. In fact, in his four innings on the mound, Barkdull had the strikeout pitch working by earning eight K’s, which included striking out the side twice.

Tooele went right back to work in the second with back to back base hits by Witkowski and Gochis which gave Barkdull a chance to help his own cause on the mound. He quickly deposited an inside pitch to left field that was shallow enough to score two more runs in the second.

The Spartans managed to cut into the lead with a double by Stephon Aloi that was ripped down the third base line to make the score 4-1.

In the fifth however, Tooele put together an inning to chase Spartan starter Wollschleger right off the mound. Tooele loaded the bases with walks by Witkowski and Barkdull and a double by Gochis. The patience of the Tooele hitters paid dividends in the following at bats as Hunt and Connor Crowell each drew bases loaded walks to score a run and Banks brought home another run on a infield ground to make the score 7-1.

Tooele was able to add another run on a chopping grounder off the bat of Reed as he beat out the throw at first to score Tooele’s eighth run. A Brant Anderson double to the right-center gap cut the lead to 8-2 in the bottom of the fifth but Tooele was still extremely in control.

And if they weren’t already in control, Tooele exploded for seven insurance runs in the seventh. Two infield errors from the Spartans and a bases loaded walk gave Tooele a 12-2 lead then Witkowski followed by belting a double to right-cener to bring in two more runs. Another costly Spartan throwing error allowed Tooele to build a 15-2 lead heading into the bottom of the seventh.

Facing insurmountable odds for a comeback, the Spartans went down swinging and actually made the game closer. An RBI single by Garrett Heward to right and a towering two-run home run to center by Aloi made it 15-5 but that was as close as the Spartans would get.

Tooele Legion’s next game will be at Dow James Field on Wednesday at 6 p.m. against Hunter.

Jake Gordon: jgordon@tooeletranscript.com