AUBURNDALE, Fla. – The Winona State University baseball team escaped the bitter Minnesota cold for the Sunshine State to begin a six-game stretch of games in Florida beginning on Thursday. The Warriors immediately ran into a tough challenge against Tiffin University in a gritty back-and-forth ballgame that WSU ultimately prevailed in with a 9-8 victory.
The 17 combined runs were all scored in the first six innings of the affair before both side's pitching staffs locked up the opposition over the final three frames. The Dragons wiped out the Warriors' lead for the second time on the day in the sixth before Chad Herbst's RBI-single knotted the score and 8-8 and Derek Martin provided the eventual game-winner later in the inning.
Martin went 2-for-3 at the plate with a pair of walks while recording a career-best five RBI. On the mound, senior Parker Holmstrom was stellar in a relief outing to pick up the win and Nicolas Herold closed the door with his second save of the season.
Winona State had to play from behind early as Tiffin tagged Warrior starter Austin Savary with two runs in the top of the first inning. The Warrior bats quickly returned the favor by plating four runs in the bottom of the frame. Martin got his big day started with a three-run double after WSU had loaded the bases to start the rally. Nick Nalewanski added a run-scoring single to drive in Martin before the inning came to an end to give the Warriors a 4-2 lead.
After the Dragons got one run back in the top of the second, Tanner Williams drilled his third homer of the season in the bottom of the inning. The sophomore's solo blast made it a 5-3 game.
Tiffin continued to battle and eventually tied the contest with four unanswered runs. The Dragons plated two runs in the third and two more in the fourth. Savary's day on the mound would end after the fourth with Tiffin leading 7-5.
Holmstrom (1-0) entered the game in the top of the fifth for WSU and proceeded to sit the Dragons down in order. He allowed just one unearned run on three hits over 4.0 IP and struck out four batters for the win.
While Holmstrom kept the Dragon bats at bay, the Warrior offense got going again in the bottom of the fifth. Bases-loaded walks by both Martin and Nalewanski knotted the score once again in the frame. Singles by Sam Kohnle, Andrew Pliner and Herbst set up the two-run inning.
The Dragons answered yet again with their lone run off Holmsrom in the top of the sixth before the Warriors took back the lead for good in the bottom half of the frame.
Winona State improves to 4-2 with the win while Tiffin falls to 2-9.
The Warriors return to the diamond on Friday morning with an 8 a.m. CT first pitch against Wheeling Jesuit.
