WINONA, Minn. - The Winona State University baseball team received a stellar combined pitching performance from
Drew Lingen and
Chandler Schmidt in a 12-2 win over Davis and Elkins College and then had to settle for a Thursday split, losing to Grand Valley State 10-5 in game two.
The win over Davis and Elkins marked the second straight victory for Winona State, with the Warriors defeating West Virginia Wesleyan College 11-5 on Wednesday, March 8 on the opening day of the 2023 WSU spring break trip.
Winona State 12, Davis & Elkins 2
In the first-ever meeting between the two schools,
Drew Lingen threw four innings of no-hit baseball, striking out four batters and allowing just one unearned run.
Chandler Schmidt took over in the fifth inning and held the Senators to one hit over the next three frames, striking out four and walking just two.
Kyle Yu drove in four RBI on a 3-for-4 day at the plate in the leadoff, also drawing a walk and scoring twice himself.
Nick Herbst also racked up three hits, including a double;
Cooper Kapanke,
Dane Weiland and
Mason Trocke all added doubles on the day to the WSU offensive barrage.
WSU used big innings in the third and seventh frames to put the game out of reach, scoring five times in the third and four more in the seventh in their highest-scoring offensive performance of the year so far. The Warriors chased D&E's Jake Garrett from the game after three innings and six runs; WSU then tagged the Senator's Brycen Schler for six more scores in the final four frames.
The Warriors were active on the base paths, with Yu, Herbst,
Jess Ondell, and
Austin Beyer each stealing a base against Davis and Elkins.
As a team, Winona State scored 12 runs on 15 hits and committed three errors. Davis and Elkins were held to two runs, one hit, and had a pair of miscues. Winona State left 15 runners on base, while the Senators stranded 19.
With the win, the Warriors improved to 3-7 on the season and Davis and Elkins fell to 0-9 overall.
Grand Valley State 10, Winona State 5
The Lakers halted the Winona State winning streak at two games, downing the Warriors 10-5.
Both teams failed to score in the first two innings but plated runs in the third frame, with GVSU owning a 2-1 lead over WSU after three innings. Grand Valley State would add three more in the top of the sixth and a single run in the seventh before Winona State would post three runs of their own in the bottom of the seventh.
Unfortunately for WSU, GVSU would go on to plate two runs in both the eighth and ninth frames, pulling away for the 10-5 victory.
Ryland Wall led Winona State with a 3-for-5 day offensively, while
Steele Beatty was 2-for-4 with a pair of RBI.
Cooper Kapanke and
Dane Weiland both collected doubles as WSU generated 12 hits but left 14 runners stranded.
Pierce Gritzmaker got the start on the hill for Winona State, going 5 & 2/3 innings, conceding eight hits and five runs.
Easton Zempel and
John Breske both had relief appearances for WSU.
Grand Valley State improves to 5-4 on the season; Winona State drops to 3-8 overall. The Warriors will return to action on Friday, March 10 for a pair of games. WSU will play California (Pa.) University at 8:30 am before taking on Lewis University at Noon.
Winona State returns to action on Friday, March 10 in their second-consecutive doubleheader; WSU will face California (Pa.) University at 8:30 am and Lewis University at Noon.
