ST. PAUL, Minn. – After a lopsided game one of the UMAC Series of the Week between the University of Northwestern and Bethany Lutheran College Baseball teams on Friday night, Saturday's doubleheader provided much more drama and some fireworks to boot.
Aaron Severson (Columbia Heights, Minn./Columbia Heights) was lights out both on the mound and at the plate in Northwestern's 5-2 win in game two, before the Vikings held on for a 5-4 win in a drama-filled finale. With two weeks left to play in the regular season, Bethany Lutheran (18-12, 13-2 UMAC) holds a one-game edge over the Eagles (14-15, 12-3 UMAC) for the top spot in the UMAC after Saturday's action.
Game One
Although they were never able to pull away by too much, the Eagles were in control of Saturday's first game from the jump. First-inning singles by
Aaron Severson (Columbia Heights, Minn./Columbia Heights),
Mark Bligh (Sydney, Australia/Magdalene Catholic College),
Christian Raya (Moline, Ill./Moline) and
Beau Rabey (Prior Lake, Minn./Prior Lake) gave Northwestern a 2-0 advantage. After a
Ben Hixon (Yorkville, Ill./Yorkville) sacrifice fly and an RBI single from
Alex Klein (Olathe, Kans./Olathe Northwest), UNW led 4-0 heading into the second inning.
Both offenses traded three-and-outs until the bottom of the fourth inning, when consecutive singles from
Bryce Campbell (New Hope, Minn./Robbinsdale Armstrong), Severson and
Benji Bruce (Andover, Minn./Maranatha Christian) loaded the bases with one out. BLC was able to get out of the jam with a pair of strikeouts to end the frame, and was finally able to get on the board against Severson, who was in the midst of pitching a gem. One earned run and one unearned in the top of the fifth run brought Bethany within a pair at 4-2.
The Eagles added an insurance run in the sixth when Bligh singled Severson home, who had singled himself to reach base. Severson finished off the seventh inning on the mound, having given up just one earned run to an offense that finished Friday's game with 22 hits and 16 runs, before handing the keys to Raya for the remainder of the game. The sophomore flamethrower didn't allow a single hit in his two innings of work, earning his first save of the season.
Bligh was lights out at the plate, going 4-5 with two RBI, while Severson was 3-5 with two runs scored. Klein was the other Eagle with multiple hits, turning in a 2-4 day with an RBI. Rabey and Hixon provided the other two RBI. Northwestern finished the game with 13 hits, all of which were singles. Severson struck out three in his 7.0 innings on the mound, allowing just one earned run. Raya pitched a hit-less two innings to earn the save.
Game Two
While the conclusion of Saturday's finale provided some drama, the early goings were fairly mundane. BLC scored on a sacrifice fly in the top second inning, and UNW wasn't able to capitalize on a runner on third in the bottom half. The Vikings plated four unearned runs in the fourth inning to take a commanding, 5-0 lead, leaving Northwestern in search of some momentum.
The Eagles appeared to find some in the fifth by getting a runner to third, but they were not able to bring him home.
Gabriel Kennedy (DeForest, Wis./DeForest) hit a two-out double to left-center field in the bottom of the sixth, but he was stranded as well. Finally, in the bottom of the eighth, UNW found some life. Three consecutive walks loaded the bases for
Alex Klein (Olathe, Kans./Olathe Northwest). The freshman fouled off several pitches before cranking his first career grand slam (and first career home run) over the wall in left field, sending the Reynolds Field crowd into a frenzy. The momentum stayed with Northwestern as
Caleb Hautajarvi (Barnum, Minn./Barnum Secondary) drew a walk and
Aaron Severson (Columbia Heights, Minn./Columbia Heights) singled, but the next two batters were retired to keep Bethany Lutheran in front, 5-4.
Andrew Simon (Brooklyn Park, Minn./Mounds View) held Bethany scoreless in the ninth to complete 5.1 innings of scoreless work out of the bullpen, setting the stage for his offense to try and tie or win the game in the bottom of the inning. Any further drama was not in the cards; however, as the Eagles went down, 1-2-3, to end the game.
Severson had another 3-5 game at the plate, while
Benji Bruce (Andover, Minn./Maranatha Christian) went 2-4. Kennedy and Klein provided UNW's two extra-base hits with a double and grand slam, respectively, with Klein driving in four via the four-bagger.
Jayden King (Wahpeton, N.D./Wahepton Senior) was credited with the loss despite only one of his five runs being earned, and the freshman struck out five in his 3.2 innings. Simon was outstanding in relief, throwing 5.1 scoreless innings to finish the game and striking out three.
Northwestern is scheduled to play its first true road game of the season on Tuesday at Macalester. First pitch in St. Paul is slated for 4:00 PM.
