MINNEAPOLIS – Jon Ellis smacked a pinch-hit, two-run double in the bottom of the seventh to lift Southwest Minnesota State to an 8-7 come-from-behind victory over Concordia-St. Paul in game one of a non-conference doubleheader at the Metrodome on Wednesday.
Game two was suspended in the top of the sixth inning due to time limit at the Metrodome with CU leading 3-1. The game is scheduled to resume at the later time this spring. SMSU visits CU on April 24 in St. Paul.
In the opener, SMSU (3-2) trailed 5-1 heading into the bottom of the sixth, before scoring seven runs in the final two innings to earn the win.
The Mustangs scored three runs in the sixth to cut the deficit to 5-4, but the Golden Bears (3-4) added two runs in the seventh to push the lead to 7-4.
Trailing heading into the bottom of the seventh,
Ryan Engels started the rally with a single and moved to second on a walk to
Ben Korger.
Jordon Kontz singled home Engels to make it 7-5, before
Brian Ness followed with a run-scoring single to score Korger to cut the CU led to 7-6. With runners on first and second,
Kyle Young grounded out advancing both runners. Following an intentional walk to
Jarred Carlson to load the bases, Ellis stepped up and smacked a 1-2 pitch into the right-center gap for the walk-off hit.
SMSU finished the opener with 10 hits, with Young and Carlson each collecting two hits. Ness and Young each scored twice, while
Steven Kremer and Ellis finished the game with two RBIs.
CU opened the game scoring a run in the top of the first, before SMSU tied it in the second with Young leading off with a double and later scoring on a sac fly by Kremer.
The Golden Bears added a single run in the fourth to chase Mustang starter
Steven Wehr, then added to the lead with a three-run fifth inning off of SMSU reliever
Corby McGlauflin to make the score 5-1.
SMSU started its rally in the sixth as Ness walked with one out and was followed by back-to-back singles by Young and Carlson to load the bases. A balk pushed across one run, before Kremer hit an RBI double to make the score 5-3. An RBI ground out by Elliot Serbus made the score 5-4, but a strikeout with the tying run on third base ended the SMSU rally.
CU added two big insurance runs in the seventh, but it proved to be not enough to overcome the SMSU rally in the home half of the inning.
Wehr finished the game tossing 3.2 innings, allowing two runs on four hits with four walks and one strikeout.
Brandan Alfson (1-0) picked up the win for SMSU facing two batters in the seventh, allowing a hit and recording a strikeout.
In game two, CU struck first scoring a pair of runs in the second inning and held the two-run advantage until the top of the fourth when Young drilled a homer over the wall in right field – the first SMSU home run this season - to cut the CU lead to 2-1. CU answered right back and pushed the lead to 3-1 in the bottom of the fourth with a solo home run by Jared Kramer.
SMSU collected four hits in the first five innings with Korger, Kontz, Ellis and Young each with one.
Joe Axelson started on the mound for SMSU and lasted 3.1 innings, giving up three runs on five hits with four walks and one strikeout.
Southwest Minnesota State continues non-conference play at the Metrodome on Tuesday, March 5, with a doubleheader versus Mayville State (N.D.) starting at 11:45 a.m.
