SMSU Splits with Concordia-St. Paul

Game One Box

Game Two Box

MINNEAPOLIS, MINN.: Greg Laughlin's sacrifice fly with one out in the bottom of the seventh gave Southwest Minnesota State a 5-4 victory over Concordia-St. Paul in game one, before dropping the second game of the doubleheader, 6-1.

In game one, Righthander Adam Schrader out-dueled Concordia's Jake Schmidt, who entered the game with a 5-0 record. Schrader struck out 10 in six innings, while allowing just three runs. The Mustangs tagged Concordia's ace for four runs in six innings.

Schrader pitched a 1-2-3 first inning, before SMSU tried to mount a two-out rally in the bottom of the inning when Andrew Kinney hit a double to left-center and Derek West walked. Schmidt got out of the jam by getting Josh Nolan to fly out to left.

Concordia took a 1-0 lead in the second when Chris Kimpton hit a two-out RBI single to right-center.

The Mustangs tied the game in the bottom of the third with some small ball. After a leadoff walk by Tony Rislov, Derick Swenson bunted Rislov to second and Greg Laughlin moved him to third with a ground out. Kinney came through with a single through the right side to score Rislov to tie the score at 1-1.

CSP took the lead again in the top of the fifth with one run, but Southwest answered with two in the bottom of the inning. Jake Munsch led off the bottom of the fifth with a single, before Andy Williamson laced a double to right-center to tie the game at 2-2. After a strikeout and a ground out, Williamson scored on a wild pitch to give SMSU a 3-2 lead.

The Golden Bears tied the game again in the sixth with a run on two hits to make the score 3-3.

Nolan hit a one-out single in the bottom of the sixth and scored when Lex Reinke tripled to right-center. But a failed squeeze attempt led to Reinke being caught stealing at home to end the rally.

However, Concordia's Chris Herbert once again tied it up as he hit the second pitch from reliever Brandon Wilhelmi over the left field fence.

Rislov hit a one-out single to center in the bottom of the seventh and pinch runner Mark Bendzick advanced to third on a double by Swenson off the right field baggy. Laughlin then won the game with a sacrifice fly to left to score Bendzick.

Kinney led the offense with two hits and two RBI.

In game two, Andrew Kinney hit a two-out homer in the bottom of the first to give SMSU's its only run of the game. Kinney led the Mustangs offense as he was two-for-three with one RBI.

SMSU's Aaron Johnson suffered the loss on the mound as he pitched 4.0 innings, scattering seven hits and allowing four runs. Arron Olson pitched for 1.1 innings allowing just two hits and Matt Paulsen pitched one inning.

The Mustangs finished the game with four hits while committing two errors.

SMSU is now 16-10 overall and 6-4 in the NSIC.

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