DULUTH, Minn. – A five-run eighth inning proved to be the difference maker in Northwestern College's Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) Tournament opening game as the Eagles came from behind to beat second-seeded Bethany Lutheran College 8-5. NWC faced a three run deficit heading into the eighth, but five hits and a Vikings error allowed the No. 3 Eagles to win and advance to Friday's 7 p.m. game versus the winner of the College of St. Scholastica and Martin Luther College in the four-team, double elimination bracket.

Game Statistics | UMAC Tournament Website

Both Northwestern and Bethany Lutheran jumped on the scoreboard early as each team scored two runs in their first opportunities in the batter's box. NWC's run production started with back-to-back singles from Cody Durkee (Wilton, N.D./Wilton) and Zach Markwith (Honolulu, Hawaii/St. Louis), with Durkee coming home on an RBI at-bat from Cody Kielsa (Howard Lake, Minn./Rogers). Markwith then crossed the plate on a Taylor Kauweloa (Kailua, Hawaii/Damien Memorial) run-scoring single.

Eagles pitcher Andy Peterson (Rogers, Minn./Rogers) gave up a pair of unearned runs in Bethany's initial plate appearance. Peterson needed a little time to shake off the jitters as two of the first four batters reached base on a walk or from being hit by a pitch. The NWC junior then started to settle down as he struck out the Vikings' Dylan Gass before getting Mitch Kliest to fly out.

Bethany struck again in the fifth inning as the Vikings took the lead with a three-run frame. Much like the first inning, a Northwestern mistake in the field eventually allowed the home team on the scoreboard to put up runs in addition to a few hits. Pitcher Garrett Benson quickly sat down the Eagles in the sixth with NWC's seventh inning looking similar minus an Aaron Rau (Woodbury, Minn./East Ridge) single.

Then came the big eighth inning when Northwestern struck gold. Zach Markwith (Honolulu, Hawaii/St. Louis) was fortunate to find first base courtesy of a fielding error to leadoff the frame before Kielsa doubled down the left field line, sending his fellow senior to third. Taylor Kauweloa (Kailua, Hawaii/Damien Memorial) and Bryan McCallum (Rogers, Minn./Rogers) did their duties with RBI singles to force a Vikings pitching change. Fortunately for NWC, the bats continued to work in their favor as more run-scoring hits came from Rau and Durkee as the momentum swung to the Eagles' side.

Still going on the hill, Peterson worked out of a potential run in the eighth before finishing the game with a one-two-three ninth to guarantee the Eagles' season into Saturday at the least.

Neither team was perfect in the field as both Bethany and Northwestern committed three errors apiece. Three of the Vikings' five runs were charged to Peterson as being earned while the Eagles' ace allowed eight hits and struck out five batters in his fifth complete game of the year.

Northwestern tallied 11 hits at the plate, with Durkee, Kielsa, Kauweloa, McCallum and Rau each recording multiple hits.

While the Eagles refuel for the 7 p.m. game, Northwestern will wait to discover who – top seed St. Scholastica or fourth ranked Martin Luther – will be its opponent. Regardless of the foe, Friday night's contest can be watched online at http://www.csssaints.com/ssn.