WINONA, Minn. – WSU ace Chase Blazier put together a solid outing in perhaps the last home start of his career, helping the Warriors snap a three-game losing streak. The Winona State baseball team won the first game of the doubleheader 7-1 before dropping the nightcap 8-5 Friday at Loughrey Field.
 
While a senior in Blazier has left his mark on the program, redshirt freshman outfielder Mitchell Heid is already making a strong first impression, leading the Warrior offense in the first game, going 3-for-3 with a three-run homer, four RBI and a run scored.
 
The first game provided little scoring until the fourth inning when the Warrior bats broke out.
 
With Travis Evanson on first, Heid drove a double to deep right center field, scoring Evanson to give the Warriors a 1-0 lead. Two batters later, Nathan Krause also hit a ball to deep right center field for an RBI double to make it 2-0. Michael Hommes made it a three-run game on an RBI double in the next at-bat, making it a 3-0 ball game.
 
The Warriors added four more in the fifth inning. With runners on first and second and two out, Evanson dropped a single into left center to score Tyler Nehring from second to make it a 4-0 lead.
 
In the next at-bat, Heid made it 7-0 on a deep drive over the right center field fence for his fifth home run of the season.
 
Sioux Falls picked up a run in the top of the sixth on an RBI single with two outs, but Krause threw out the runner trying to advance to second to get out of the inning and limiting the damage.
 
It appeared Blazier was in trouble in the top of the seventh as well, loading the bases with one out. However, Blazier closed out the game striking out consecutive batters and getting out of the final inning unscathed.
 
With the win, Blazier improved to 3-3 on the season after pitching a complete seven inning game giving up one run on 13 hits and walked one with three strikeouts.
 
In the second game, Plamann picked off where Heid left off. The Warriors second batter gave the Warriors an early 1-0 lead in the first inning on a homer that just stayed fair over the right field fence.
 
However, the Cougars responded with a six-run third inning where WSU starting pitcher Hayden Krimmer struggled with his command.
 
Sioux Falls picked up two more runs in the top of the fifth inning to expand the lead to 8-1.
 
The Warriors answered back with three runs in the bottom of the fifth with a Jesus Cazares three-run blast over the center field wall to cut the lead to 8-4.
 
Winona State cut into the lead once more in the bottom of the sixth on a solo home run by Kipp Youngquist to right center field to make it 8-5.
 
The Cougars threated in the top of the seventh with runners on first and third with one out. Relief pitcher Josh Nielsen got out of the jam, fielding a sharp ground ball and turning a double play to give up no runs in the frame.
 
In the top of the eighth, Sioux Falls tried to add an insurance run as the runner at third tried to steal home between pitches, but Nielsen gunned down the runner at home plate and Krause tagged him for the third out.
 
However, the Warrior bats would come up empty in the final two frames and Sioux Falls took the nightcap, 8-5.
 
Nielsen pitched a very strong relief outing for the Warriors, going four innings and giving up no runs on three hits while striking out three.
 
Cazares had a strong game at the plate, going 3-for-4 with a homer, three RBIs, and a run scored.
 
Krimmer took the loss for the Warriors, dropping to 2-5 on the season after giving up six runs, four earned on four hits with three walks while striking out two in 2 2/3 innings pitched.
 
Winona State (15-21, 13-11 NSIC) will close out its series with Sioux Falls on Saturday with the first pitch of the doubleheader starting at noon at Loughrey Field.