ST. PAUL, Minn. – Through seven innings of game one on Friday, it appeared the UMAC Series of the Week between the University of Northwestern and Bethany Lutheran College Baseball teams was delivering everything we expected it to be. That's when the Vikings rattled off eight runs on eight hits in the eighth inning to separate themselves from Northwestern, en route to a 16-6 win at Reynolds Field. Coming into Friday, the two heavyweights were tied atop the UMAC standings at 11-1. Bethany Lutheran now holds a one-game advantage with two games still to play in the series.
BLC plated a run in the top of the first inning, but the Eagles answered to take the lead in the bottom half, courtesy of reigning UMAC Player of the Week
Christian Raya's (Moline, Ill./Moline) fifth home run of the season and his fourth in 10 days. UNW's 2-1 lead wouldn't hold for long, as Bethany scored two more runs in the top of the second to regain the lead, 3-2.
The Vikings' lead grew to 5-2 in the top of the third inning before Northwestern was again able to cut into it.
Aaron Severson (Columbia Heights, Minn./Columbia Heights) and
Benji Bruce (Andover, Minn./Maranatha Christian) hit consecutive, one-out singles, then
Mark Bligh (Sydney, Australia/Magdalene Catholic College) reached base on a fielder's choice that resulted in no outs. Raya walked to bring Severson home, then an error brought Bruce around to make it a 5-4 ball game.
The scoring hit a standstill as both aces settled in, until the top of the seventh inning, when each team scored a run. The Eagles' run came on an RBI single by Severson and kept UNW within a run at 6-5. With
Nick Drinken's (Randolph, Minn./Randolph) pitch count higher than the author of this recap's average blood sugar, Northwestern went to its bullpen to begin the eighth inning. Bethany Lutheran pounced, scoring eight runs on eight hits, two balks and two errors in the frame to put the game effectively out of reach at 14-5. The Eagles scored one more run when Raya doubled and came home on a wild pitch in the eighth, but ultimately suffered a 16-6 loss to begin the critical series.
Raya paced UNW's offense by going 2-2 with a home run, a double, 3 RBI and two runs scored. Severson was the other Eagle to record multiple hits, going 2-4 with an RBI. Bruce produced the only other hit for Northwestern, who was out-hit 22-5 in the contest, while
Alex Christian (Andover, Minn./Legacy Christian Academy) was responsible for the other RBI. Drinken struck out three in 7.0 innings and only two of his six runs were earned. In total, UNW committed six errors and three balks in the game.
Games two and three of the UMAC Series of the Week will commence Saturday afternoon, beginning at 1:00 PM.
