DAKOTA WESLEYAN HANDLES NORTHWESTERN IN DOUBLEHEADER FINALE, CONTINUES POSTSEASON PUSH
MITCHELL, S.D. – In the thick of a congested Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) postseason push, head coach Charlie Dubanoski, and the Dakota Wesleyan University baseball program helped its cause with a doubleheader sweep of conference rival Northwestern College on Saturday afternoon from Cadwell Park in Mitchell, S.D. Senior lefthanded pitcher Matt Bezdicek worked the complete game, and Dakota Wesleyan clocked the 6-4 opener followed by a 4-3 victory in the finale for the series win.
MITCHELL, S.D. – In the thick of a congested Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) postseason push, head coach Charlie Dubanoski, and the Dakota Wesleyan University baseball program helped its cause with a doubleheader sweep of conference rival Northwestern College on Saturday afternoon from Cadwell Park in Mitchell, S.D. Senior lefthanded pitcher Matt Bezdicek worked the complete game, and Dakota Wesleyan clocked the 6-4 opener followed by a 4-3 victory in the finale for the series win.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Bezdicek, the native of Plymouth, Minn., opened the top of the first by working through the NWC lineup in order, and the Dakota Wesleyan offense followed suit with a pair of runs on one hit in the bottom of the first inning. Cameron Quigley ignited the action with a lead-off walk, and Carter Gullickson ensued with a timely hit to right field. Wyatt Hunt capped off the inning with a groundout RBI while DWU registered the 2-0 benefit.
NWC responded with a run in the second and third frames to even the game at 2-2 before a fielder's choice by Luke LeMay plated both Trayven Boellstorff and Kalub Carmichael in the bottom of the fourth stanza. Offensively, the Tigers (13-20, 7-13 GPAC) were limited to just three hits in the opener, however; the Blue and Gray capitalized and controlled 4-2 advantage.
The Raiders (16-20, 8-12 GPAC) once again matched the score, 4-4, in the top of the six inning thanks to a Sam Stanford RBI single as the NWC infielder finished 2-of-4 from the plate. Daulton Wilcoxen nevertheless broke up the tie with an RBI knock up the middle, and Dakota Wesleyan balanced the 6-4 edge with three outs to play. Bezdicek, who fanned seven Raider batters, retired Northwestern in order for the game one victory as the 6-foot-4 senior collected both the win and complete outing.
Looking to avoid a hangover in the series finale, Quigley and the Blue and Gray raced out to another 2-0 start in the bottom of the first stanza. Quigley, the Newcastle, Wyo. senior, opened the momentum with his team-leading 19th base-on balls of the season. Hunt and LeMay meanwhile kept the Northwestern defense at bay with back-to-back RBI singles for the early lead.
On the bump, Jereko Martinez worked a scoreless opening frame and relinquished just one earned run on a pair of NWC knocks as Northwestern leveled the game, 2-2, with runs in the second and third innings. The stalemate was short-lived though thanks to an infield single by Quigley in the fifth frame, and Bezdicek dialed an RBI to the outfield to push the Tigers out to the 4-2 edge.
The visiting Raiders engineered a run in the seventh stanza to trim the margin to 4-3 before two scoreless innings of relief by both Kyler Halverson and Troy Wilhelm. Dakota Wesleyan held on for the one-run victory, its second of the season, with the 4-3 final. Martinez tallied the win with three strikeouts in seven innings of action while Bezdicek and Hunt led the charge at the plate with four combined hits.
UP NEXT
The Tigers ramp up action with a mid-week tilt versus in-state and NCAA Division I opponent South Dakota State University on Tuesday at 3 p.m. from Erv Huether Field in Brookings, S.D.