MARSHALL, Minn. – Augustana University remained in second place in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference standings using the long ball to sweep a doubleheader over Southwest Minnesota State on Wednesday in college baseball at Legion Field in Marshall.
The Vikings hit two home runs, including a three-run homer by Jason Axelberg, to win 8-3 in game one, before belting two more home runs to earn a 6-3 victory in game two.
Augustana improves to 30-12 overall, 24-8 NSIC, while SMSU falls to 22-17 overall, 17-15 NSIC. The Mustangs are now in a three-way tie for fifth place in the league standings.
In game one, SMSU had several chances early in the game to build an early lead but failed to come up with the big hit. The Mustangs opened the first inning with
Levi Lampert and
Owen Latendresse smacking singles before
Cory Bantam walked to load the bases with no outs. Following a strikeout,
Carter Lang dropped in an RBI single to plate Lampert, but back-to-back strikeouts with the bases loaded kept the game 1-0.
SMSU held the 1-0 lead into the third inning before Jake Lundquist drilled a solo home run to start the inning and tie the game at 1-1. It was Lundquist's first extra-base hit of the season. AU added to the lead later in the inning as Axelberg drilled a two-out, three-run homer off SMSU starter
Jameson Quinn to put the Vikings in front at 4-1.
SMSU answered with a run in the bottom of the third with
Jared Cortez hitting an infield RBI single to score Bantam and cut the deficit to 4-2.
Trailing 5-2 in the fifth, SMSU again loaded the bases with no outs behind singles from Lampert, Latendresse and a walk to Bantam. After a strikeout, Lang drove home a run with a fielder's choice, but a fly out ended the inning with the tying run on first base.
AU put the game away scoring three runs on two hits and two errors in the top of the seventh inning.
Quinn (3-2) tossed a solid 6 1/3 innings allowing six runs on six hits with three walks and three strikeouts.
Both teams collected eight hits in the game with Lampert and Latendresse each finishing with two hits, while Bantam,
Evan Behn, Lang and Cortez all had one hit.
In game two, AU used a three-run sixth inning to snap a 1-1 game and then scored two in the ninth to pull away for the three-run victory.
Axleberg opened the scoring drilling a solo homer off Mustang starting pitcher
Cody Wichmann in the top of the second to give the Vikings a 1-0 lead.
SMSU stranded runners on second and third base in the third but finally broke through to tie the game in the fifth with a two-out rally.
Henry Hammrich opened the inning with a walk but was out moments later on a close play attempting to steal second. After
Caleb Gardow flied out,
Brock Woitalla kept the inning alive with a single and moved to second on a walk by a Lampert. Latendresse came through with an RBI single to tie the game at 1-1 and moved to second on the throw to the plate to put runners at second and third base. The game remained tied however as a fly out ended the rally.
The Vikings quickly regained the lead in the top of the sixth with one out back-to-back singles and an RBI double to gain a 2-1 lead. With runners at second and third and one out, Joshua Koskie hit a comebacker to Wichmann, but on the play Wichmann was called for interference to allow a run to score. One batter later, a sac bunt plated another run and the Vikings led 4-1.
SMSU left the bases loaded in the sixth but pulled to within one in the home half of the eighth. Lang started the rally with a hit by pitch and with one out moved to third base on a pinch hit double by
Tyler Froland. Gardow made the score 4-2 with an RBI single before a wild pitch plated pinch runner
Eli Gibbs and cut the deficit to 4-3 and put the tying run at second base. Gardow moved to third base following a fly out before Lampert was hit by a pitch to put the go-ahead run on base. AU was able to escape another jam coaxing a fly out to end the inning and maintain the 4-3 advantage.
AU's Jack Hines, the reigning national player of the year, was held hitless all day until the ninth when he gave the Vikings big insurance runs with a two-run home run to push the lead to 6-3.
Wichmann (1-2) suffered the loss allowing four runs on eight hits with one strikeout and one hit batter.
Cameron Jensen tossed shutout innings of relief, while Noah Cekella surrendered the two-run homer in the ninth.
Lantendresse finished the nightcap 3 for 5 with an RBI, while Woitalla, Gardow, Lang and Froland had one hit each.
SMSU continues home play this weekend with a big conference three-game series versus eighth-place University of Mary. The Marauders are one game behind SMSU, Winona State and Minnesota Crookston. The two teams meet on Saturday for a 1:30 p.m. doubleheader, while Sunday's single game starts at 12 p.m.
