Minnesota State take care of Huskies
The Minnesota State men’s baseball team took care of business against the St. Cloud State University Huskies in a three-game series.
The Mavericks split a double header Thursday winning 3-2 and losing 5-1. The Mavs were set to face the Huskies in a double header Friday, but one of the games was canceled.
The Mavs defeated the Huskies 3-2 Friday in a comeback win.
The Mavericks got off to a rocky start in game one going down 1-0 in the first inning. The Huskies held the Mavs scoreless for the first five innings.
The Mavericks responded big in the sixth scoring three runs. Senior Ryan Wickman and sophomore Louis Magers each smashed home their fifth homeruns of the season to cement the comeback.
Junior Mitch Gutknecht sealed the win for the Mavs in the top of the seventh after collecting his second save of the season.
Game two was a different story for the Mavs as they weren’t able to get on the board after Magers’s RBI drove home Aiden Byrne for his second run of the day. The Huskies dominated from this point defeating the Mavs 5-1.
“Two well-played games today. Spencer Wright did a great job on the mound keeping us in the game, head coach Matt Magers stated after the game. “Byrne, Wickman, and Magers had great at-bats all day which propelled our offense. In the second game, we had great at-bats to get baserunners on but were unable to get the ball to fall in.”
Friday’s game sparked another comeback win for the Mavs. The Mavs were trailing 2-1 going into the ninth inning.
The Mavericks got on the board first in the bottom of the second after the Huskies made an error which contributed to the Mavs scoring. Magers was forced onto third base and brought home after a sacrifice bunt from Zach Stroch. Ryan Friedges registered his 15th RBI of the season on the play.
The Huskies had a strong eighth inning, scoring twice to bring their lead up to 2-1. The Mavs put in Sean Gamble in response to close out the ninth. Gamble delivered a clean inning giving the Mavs momentum heading into the bottom of the ninth.
Magers opened the ninth with a leadoff walk, and was pushed to second base after a sacrifice bunt by Nick Baker. The comeback was sealed for the Mavs after Stroch smashed his second home run of the season for a 3-2 win.
“A big win in tough conditions to clinch the series,” Matt Magers stated after the game. “We got impressive efforts on the mound from Magers, junior Mitch Gutknecht, and Gamble to limit a strong offense.”
The Mavericks travel to Duluth to take on the University of Minnesota Duluth Thursday.
Header Photo: Minnesota State’s Mitch Gutknecht clinched the win for the Mavericks after collecting his second save of the season Friday. (Courtesy Maverick Athletics)
Write to Ahmed Hassan at ahmed.hassan.4@mnsu.edu