CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – The Warriors baseball team completed the four-game sweep of Bemidji State with 16-3 and 7-1 wins over the Beavers.
The Warriors dominated game one after putting up 12 runs in the first two innings en route to a 16-3 victory. A five-spot in the second inning of game two propelled WSU to a 7-1 win to complete the sweep.
Game One: WSU (16) – BSU (3)
Winona State kicked off the day with a five-run first inning started by an RBI single by
Klayton Hawkins, scoring
Easton Arendt to make it 1-0.
Ethan Patterson doubled, scoring both
Jack Funke and
Dylan Harer, putting WSU up 3-0.
Max Pederson finished off the inning with a two-RBI single, scoring Hawkins and Patterson.
The Warriors blew the game open with seven runs in the bottom of the second inning.
Adam Wall plated Arendt with Harer scoring on a passed ball to make it 7-0. Hawkins hit a sacrifice fly to score Wall, putting the game at 8-0. Patterson and Pederson traded RBI doubles, giving WSU a 10-0 advantage. A few batters later,
Josh Hatano and Arendt recorded back-to-back doubles, ending the inning at 12-0 Warriors.
In the bottom of the third, Patterson scored Hawkins on an RBI groundout, giving WSU a 13-0 lead after three innings. Bemidji got on the board with a two-run home run in the fourth inning and a sacrifice fly in the sixth inning, making it 13-3 in favor of Winona State. The Warriors tacked on three runs in the bottom of the sixth after a two-RBI single by Arendt and an RBI double by Harer extending the WSU lead to the final score of 16-3.
Arendt led Winona State, going a perfect 4-for-4 at the plate with three runs and three RBIs in the win. Harer added three hits with Patterson tallying a team-leading four RBIs. Six Warriors had two or more hits in the game.
Nathan Vela (1-2) notched the win on the mound for the Warriors. He went 6.0 innings, allowing five hits and three earned runs while striking out one.
Dylan Roher pitched a scoreless seventh inning for WSU.
Game Two: WSU (7) – BSU (1)
The game remained scoreless until the bottom of the second after a two-RBI triple by
Cayden Mueller that scored
Connor Greuel and
Cal Casper, making it 2-0. A couple batters later,
Connor Weed plated
Landon Zeuli and Mueller on a two-RBI single, growing the Warriors' edge to 4-0. An RBI walk by
Joe Fischer scored
Christian Varsho ending the frame with WSU leading 5-0.
Boone Kirst singled in the bottom of the fourth, scoring Zeuli, to make it 6-0.
Maddux Poock crossed home on a passed ball in the sixth inning, guiding the Warriors to a 7-0 advantage. The Beavers scored in the final frame to end the game 7-1 and complete the Warriors sweep.
Casper led WSU with two hits in game two with Weed and Mueller each having two RBIs in the win.
Brayden Deering started the game for the Warriors, tossing 2.0 scoreless innings allowing one hit and striking out one.
Ryan Buchta tossed the third inning while
Wesley Johnson (2-1) earned the win, going 2.0 innings, giving up one hit and punching out two hitters.
Carson Jones and
Logan LaPlante pitched the sixth and seventh innings for Winona State.
The Warriors look to carry momentum into their first home series of the year versus the University of Mary on Saturday, March 28 and Sunday, March 29. First pitch is scheduled for 1:30pm on Saturday and 12:00pm on Sunday at Loughrey Field.
