ST. PAUL, Minn. - After a tight opening game of the series between the University of Northwestern and University of Minnesota Morris baseball teams went Northwestern's way, the two squads were back at Reynolds Field on Saturday morning for a doubleheader to close out the weekend slate. Each team had its turn beating up on the other, with UNW winning game one, 13-3, in eight innings, and Morris taking the second by an 8-4 score. Despite the split, the Eagles still remain atop the UMAC with a 9-3 conference record.
Game One
After the Eagles and Cougars partook in a pitchers' duel on Friday, the runs were flowing for Northwestern in the first game of Saturday's doubleheader, and the hosts got another terrific pitching performance from
Dreyer Homan (Clara City, Minn./MACCRAY), who struck out 11 in eight innings. However, it was actually Morris who struck first, scoring a pair of runs off of
Dreyer Homan (Clara City, Minn./MACCRAY) in the top of the third inning. With the seal broken, UNW went to work at the plate itself in the bottom half. A
Bryce Campbell (New Hope, Minn./Robbinsdale Armstrong) double set the table for
Davis Winter (Wausau, Wis./Wausau East) to hit a two-run single to tie the game, then Winter scored on a bases-loaded balk to give the Eagles their first lead at 3-2. A wild pitch allowed
Kason Pietruszewski (Warroad, Minn./Warroad) to dash home from third, and an RBI single from
Tony Greco (Janesville, Wis./Janesville Craig) made it 5-2 after three.
After Morris scratched another run across in the top of the fifth inning, Northwestern added another run in the bottom half on an RBI double from
Jack Burns (Plainfield, Ill./Aurora Christian), and really broke the game open in the following inning.
AJ Kazel (Esko, Minn./Esko) clubbed an RBI double to begin the flurry, and came around to score on an error. Burns drove in another run with a single to make it 9-3, and Greco knocked in two more on a single to increase the lead to 11-3.
With the run rule within striking distance, a pair of extra-base hits walked it off the UNW in the bottom of the eighth. A Burns triple brought Winter around, and the freshman scored the 13th and final run of the game, courtesy of a
Ben Hixon (Yorkville, Ill./Yorkville) double.
Burns smacked three hits and drove in three runs, coming up a home run shy of the cycle. Greco also plated three runs on two hits, and Winter two. Hixon and Kazel each recorded a pair of hits and one RBI. Despite giving up two early earned runs, Homan settled in and dominated, striking out 11 and giving up just six hits in his complete-game (eight innings).
Game Two
Although the Eagles appeared to be primed to set themselves up for a series sweep early in game two of the doubleheader, they eventually ran out of gas. UMM scored a run in the top of the first inning, but Northwestern got on the board in the first frame as well. Winter led things off with a double and was singled home by Burns to tie the game.
Parker Huebsch (Woodbury, Minn./New Life Academy) added an RBI single of his own to give UNW a 2-1 lead after one.
Minnesota Morris was able to tie the game in the top of the second, and took a 4-2 lead in the fifth as the Eagles' offense was unable to get much going, aside from a Greco double and another Burns single that produced zero runs. Northwestern got a runner to third base in the bottom of the sixth, and after they failed to get him home, the Cougars made them pay. A four-run seventh put Morris firmly in the driver's seat at 8-2.
UNW showed some signs of life in the bottom of the eighth, loading the bases after three-straight walks to begin the inning. Kazel brought one in on a groundout, and a
Solomon Kardell (Coon Rapids, Minn./Legacy Christian Academy) sacrifice fly made it 8-4 with two outs, but the Eagles went hitless the rest of the way and UMM was able to salvage a win to avoid the series sweep.
Burns was the lone Eagle to record multiple hits, and also threw 2.1 innings of shutout ball, with five strikeouts. He was joined in the one RBI club by Huebsch, Kazel and Kardell. Pietruszewski took the loss on the mound after giving up three earned runs and striking out five in 5.0 innings.
Up Next
It will be a fairly quick turnaround for Northwestern before it travels to Macalester on Monday, April 13th for a 4:00 PM tilt.
