Game 1 Box
Game 2 Box

MARSHALL, Minn. – Southwest Minnesota State used a pair of strong pitching performances and cracked out 21 combined hits to earn a doubleheader sweep over the University of Mary on Saturday at Alumni Field, winning 4-2 and 11-1 in seven innings.
 
The two teams conclude the four-game series tomorrow starting with a doubleheader at 12 p.m.
 
Justin Clark (1-5) earned his first victory of the season in game one, tossing 6 2/3 innings, allowing just two runs on five hits with seven strikeouts. He finished the game throwing 111 pitches, including 76 for strikes.
 
U-Mary scored a run in the top of the on a first-and-third double steal to take a 1-0 lead in game one.
 
The score remained 1-0 until the fourth, when SMSU pushed across four runs on four hits. Shane Sellner worked a one-out walk before Jayden Fleck followed with a two-run home run—his second long ball of the season to put the Mustangs in front. Ben Heichel kept the rally alive with a two-out single and promptly stole second. Tanner Strommen delivered a run-scoring single and moved to second on the throw to the plate. Cole VanderBeek followed with an RBI double to extend the lead to 4-1.  
 
The support was more than enough for Clark—who has pitched well this season—but was still in search of his first win of the season.
 
VanderBeek finished 3 for 4 with an RBI to pace SMSU's seven-hit attack.
 
Seth Meide had three of U-Mary's five hits in the opener.
 
In game two, Cole Petersen fired a complete game three-hitter, allowing one unearned run with a career-high eight strikeouts and two walks. Petersen is now 5-2 on the season and lowered his ERA to 1.52.
 
The Marauders scored an unearned run in the top of the first to take an early lead in game two.
 
SMSU answered in the home half of the second to build a 3-1 advantage. Sellner started the rally with a lead-off home over the right-center field fence. Following a single by Fleck and a hit by pitch to Ben Heichel, a sack bunt by Kody Larson put runners at second and third. VanderBeek followed with a line drive single to score Fleck, a throwing error by the U-Mary catcher allowed Heichel to cross the plate and make the lead 3-1.
 
SMSU added to the lead in the third as Liam Lopez scored on a wild pitch to make the score 4-1, before Kody Larson ripped a two-run single to right-center field to extend the margin to 6-1.
 
SMSU was not finished scoring, adding three more in the fifth. Fleck worked a lead-off walk and moved to second on a one-out single by Larson. VanderBeek followed with a triple over the head of the centerfielder to score a pair of runs, then scrambled home on the play on a throwing error by the catcher to make the score 9-1.
 
The lead moved to 10-1 in the sixth as Larson delivered to a single to score Sellner. SMSU scored its final run in the seventh as Brady Lanoue sprinted home on a first-and-third double steal to secure the victory via run-rule.
 
SMSU racked up 11 hits in the contest with VanderBeek finishing 3 for 5 with three RBIs, Larson was 3 for 3 and tied a career-high with three RBIs, while Strommen also finished the game with three hits.