ST. PETER, Minn. – The University of Minnesota Morris baseball team started Upper Midwest Athletic Conference play 2-0 after defeating Crown College 9-6 and 10-4 Saturday in St. Peter, Minn.
Game 1
Parker Gilchrist started the game with a one-two-three first inning. In the bottom of the first,
Landen Meyerdirk reached on a single to third base, then stole second.
Kellan Oligmueller drew a two-out walk, and
Peyton Neadeau drove in the opening runs of the game with a double to left field.
Bradie Black pushed the lead to 3-0 with a single to left-center.
Crown got on the board in the second with a home run.
Ben Meuser responded in the bottom half of the inning with a two-run blast. The lead continued to grow in the third as Neadeau hit a leadoff double, followed by Black getting hit by a pitch, and Trever Haberman singling to load the bases. Meyerdirk was hit by a pitch to score a run, and an error put UMM up 7-1 after three innings.
In the sixth, Meyerdirk reached on a bunt single.
Tyler Moriarty advanced the runner with a sacrifice bunt. Meuser singled to put runners on the corners, then advanced to second on a steal. Neadeau followed with a single to drive in another Cougar run.
The Polars added three runs on another home run. Meyerdirk reached in the bottom of the eighth after being hit by a pitch, then stole second and advanced to third on a balk. Moriarty singled to score the final UMM run of the contest.
In the top of the ninth, Crown hit its third home run of the game to cut the lead to three.
Breckin Silvain entered to get the final outs as UMM secured a 9-6 victory.
Minnesota Morris totaled 10 hits in the win, with Neadeau leading the team with three. Meyerdirk and Meuser also recorded multiple-hit games. Meuser homered, and Neadeau added a double for the team's extra-base hits. Neadeau and Meuser led the team in RBIs with three and two, respectively. UMM also had five stolen bases, with Meyerdirk totaling two.
On the mound, Gilchrist earned the win after pitching 7.2 innings and striking out four batters.
Zach Anderson pitched 0.2 innings, and Silvain earned the save by recording the final two outs.
Game 2
Ryan McGie recorded the first Cougar hit of game two with a single in the second inning. Haberman and
Grayson Van Nelson each drew a walk to load the bases.
Blake Imhoff singled to drive in the opening run, and a fielder's choice by Meyerdirk scored Haberman to give the Cougars a 2-0 advantage.
Crown cut into the lead with an RBI double in the third. Haberman restored the two-run edge with a home run to right field in the fourth. The Cougars extended the lead to 4-1 after a successful double steal by McGie and Black in the sixth.
The Polars responded in the seventh, scoring two runs to pull within one. In the bottom of the seventh, Meyerdirk reached on a dropped third strike. An error put runners on the corners, and Neadeau laid down a bunt that scored Meyerdirk. Black then pushed the score to 7-3 with a two-run single.
In the eighth, Crown added one more run. Oligmueller entered as a pinch hitter and singled to right field.
Caleb Walker replaced him on the base paths and advanced on a wild pitch. Meyerdirk tripled to drive in Walker, and Moriarty followed with a single for the ninth run of the game. Meuser later drove in Moriarty with a single to give UMM a 10-4 victory.
The Cougars had another 10-hit performance, with nine student-athletes recording a hit and Black leading the way with two. Haberman hit a home run, and Meyerdirk added a triple for the extra-base hits. Black and Meyerdirk each had two RBIs, while Haberman and Meyerdirk both scored two runs.
Johnny Lopez earned the win on the mound, pitching 6.1 innings and striking out five batters. Silvain pitched the final 2.2 innings to earn another save, striking out one batter.
The Cougars and Polars conclude the series Sunday with a 1 p.m. start time.
