MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. – The University of Minnesota Morris baseball team went 1-1 against Macalester College, falling 4-1 before earning a 5-3 victory at U.S. Bank Stadium Wednesday afternoon in Minneapolis, Minn.
 
Game 1
Tyler Moriarty led off the game with a walk but was thrown out attempting to steal second. Parker Gilchrist struck out the first batter he faced. The Scots put two runners on with two outs in the first, but a fly ball to Blake Imhoff ended the inning.
 
Trevor Haberman recorded the first hit for the Cougars with a leadoff single in the second. Landen Meyerdirk beat out a potential double play to keep the inning alive. Aidan Moran followed with a single to put runners on the corners, but the Cougars left them stranded.
 
Imhoff singled to start the third, and a sacrifice bunt by Moriarty moved him to second. Bradie Black reached on an error to put two on for Ben Meuser. The first baseman delivered with a single to drive in the opening run.
 
No runs were scored until the bottom of the sixth, when Macalester took the lead with four runs. In the top of the seventh, Minnesota Morris went down in order as the Scots claimed a 4-1 win.
 
The Cougars totaled five hits, one each from Meuser, Haberman, Moran, Imhoff and Luke McHugh. Meyerdirk went 2-for-2 on the basepaths, adding two stolen bases to his team-leading total.
 
Gilchrist started on the mound for UMM, pitching four scoreless innings with four strikeouts, four hits allowed and no walks. Ryan McGie pitched 1.2 innings with one strikeout and allowed four earned runs. Breckin Silvain recorded the final out on four pitches.
 
Game 2
Travis Godfrey opened game two by striking out the first two batters he faced. Moriarty again led off with a walk, and Black followed with a single to put runners on the corners with no outs. Meuser grounded into a double play but drove in a run to open the scoring.
 
Godfrey added two more strikeouts in the second and third innings to maintain the one-run lead. Caleb Walker recorded his first hit of the season with a single to start the third. A sacrifice bunt from Moriarty moved him to second, and Meuser hit the team's first triple of the season to score Walker and give UMM a 2-0 lead.
 
Godfrey added two more strikeouts in the fourth. Meyerdirk reached on a bunt single in the inning, then stole second and advanced to third on a flyout but was left stranded.
 
The Scots scored once in the fifth, but Godfrey recorded his ninth strikeout of the game. Moriarty drew his second walk and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Meuser drove in his second run with a double to restore the two-run lead.
 
Macalester tied the game in the sixth. Johnny Lopez entered with a runner on and one out and struck out the next two batters to escape the jam.
 
McGie led off the sixth with a triple to right-center. Meyerdirk followed with a single to bring in the go-ahead run. He then stole second and advanced to third on a sacrifice bunt by Moran. Peyton Neadeau lifted a sacrifice fly to left to score Meyerdirk and give UMM a 5-3 advantage.
 
After a walk to start the seventh, McHugh entered in relief. He induced back-to-back fielder's choices and a flyout to right field to secure the 5-3 victory.
 
The Cougars totaled eight hits in the win, with Meuser, Meyerdirk and Walker each recording two. Meuser and McGie both tripled, and Meuser added a double. Meyerdirk stole three bases to increase his season total to eight.
 
Godfrey pitched five innings with nine strikeouts, allowing three hits, one walk and one earned run. Lopez earned his first win of the season, striking out two in 0.2 innings. McHugh picked up the save after recording the final outs.
 
The Cougars will open play at the RussMatt Central Florida Invitational in Florida on March 9 against Beloit College.