ST. CLOUD, Minn. (Joe Faber Field) – Back-to-back two-out doubles off the bats of sophomore Tyler Nelson (SS, Hayfield, Minn.) and senior Chad Hanson (OF, St. Paul, Minn.) broke a 0-0 tie in the top of the ninth in game two of a Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference doubleheader to lift Bemidji State University baseball to a 3-2 victory and twin bill split at No. 22 St. Cloud State University Saturday.
Bemidji State (19-18, 13-11 NSIC) lost game one 8-0 to the nationally-ranked Huskies (31-10, 20-7 NSIC) and went one and three in the four-game series.
The Beavers are holding down the No. 8 spot in the NSIC standings with one week remaining in conference play (six games). BSU travels to play the team in the No. 9 slot, Southwest Minnesota State University April 30 for a league twin bill beginning at 1:30 p.m. The top eight teams at the end of the regular season advance to the NSIC Tournament.
The Beavers need one more win to reach 20 for the third consecutive season and for the first time in program history. Only seven teams in the program’s 63 seasons have reached the 20-win plateau.
Game 1
The Beavers only totaled six hits in game one, getting two from freshman Logan Riedel (OF, Clarissa, Minn.). St. Cloud State totaled eight runs on 12 hits. SCSU scored one in the first, four in the fourth (a grand slam) and three in the fifth to down BSU.
Freshman Derek Masberg (RHP, Kilkenny, Minn.) suffered the loss (1-3), as he allowed eight runs (all earned) on 10 hits with two strikeouts and zero walks.
Game 2
Redshirt-sophomore Jesse Katz (RHP, Deerfield, Ill.) pitched a gem to keep the Beavers in the game and hold the high-powered Huskies off the board. He only allowed four hits through seven innings and one out. Katz fanned just one batter, but didn’t issue a walk. Junior Tyler Saeugling (RHP, Dubuque, Iowa) came into the game with a runner on second in the eighth and recorded the final two outs of the frame without any damage.
The eighth inning escape setup the big ninth inning for Bemidji State. Senior outfielder Cole Bjorge (Prior Lake, Minn.) recorded a one-out single to right to get a runner on base. A two-out single to right by freshman Terry Hadden (RHP/OF, Elk River, Minn.) moved Bjorge to second. Nelson ripped a double down the right field line to plate Bjorge and snap the stalemate, then Hanson pushed a pitch to left center to score two and open a 3-0 lead.
With a program record seven saves already under his belt, junior righty Drake Huggans (Greenley, Colo.) came into the contest to pick up his eighth. The save had to be earned as the bottom half wasn’t without drama. SCSU scored two runs on three hits and left the game-tying run on second and the game-winning tally on first. Huggans' eight saves ranks second in the NSIC.
Batting lead-off, Nelson finished the game 3-for-5 with a run and RBI. He has five games with three or more hits, which is a team-best. Freshman Bo Schmitz (C, St. Cloud, Minn.) went 2-for-2 and a walk.
Saeugling earned the win despite only recording two outs to improve to 4-4.
For more information on the Bemidji State baseball program, follow the Beavers on Twitter (@BSUBeavers), like them on Facebook (facebook.com/BSUBeavers) or sign up for the TXTUpdates from BSUBeavers.com text-messaging system through the "Mulitmedia" pull down menu on the main page of BSUBeavers.com.
Nestled in Northern Minnesota’s wooded region and located on the shore of Lake Bemidji, Bemidji State University sponsors 15 varsity athletic programs with NCAA Division I men’s and women’s hockey membership in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association, while its 13 NCAA Division II programs hold membership in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference (NSIC).
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