By John RittenhouseThe Hills Thunder opened the 2003 amateur baseball season with a victory Sunday in Hills.The Thunder entertained Truman, and more importantly, their fans as they cruised to a 16-1 victory in the opener.Hills’ rout featured an 11-run eruption in the sixth inning, which turned a 5-0 advantage into a commanding 16-0 lead.The hosts plated one run in the bottom of the first inning before adding two counters in the second and third frames to open a 5-0 cushion.Cade Lange scored the first run of the season for the Thunder when he drew a walk and scored on a wild pitch in the first.Justin Van Maanen and Eric Harnack slapped run-scoring singles in the second inning, and Wade Jellema and Eric Harnack added RBI singles in the third to make it 5-0.Any chances of Truman putting together a rally to win the game were erased when the Thunder scored 11 runs in the sixth.Matt Funke, David Top, Derek Sammons and Matt Carroll came up with two-run singles to highlight the big inning. Keith Forshey added an RBI single to the rally, and Carroll was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to force home another run.Chad Rauk blanked Truman through the first five innings to pick up the win. He fanned seven batters, walked one and allowed two hits.Top pitched the final two frames, allowing one run and two walks while recording three strikeouts.Eric Harnack and Top led Hills at the plate with two hits each.The Thunder played in Wilmont Wednesday and will host Fairmont Sunday.
