HASTINGS, Neb. – Down to the final month of the regular season, the Dakota Wesleyan University baseball program squared off against league opponent Hastings College in a Great Plains Athletic Conference (GPAC) doubleheader on Saturday from Duncan Field in Hastings, Neb. Dakota Wesleyan was unable to hang onto a late lead in the opener falling 5-4 in extra innings, though DWU bounced back for a 7-5 victory over Hastings in the finale.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Both offenses came out of the gate sluggish with a combined two hits through the first three innings, and the score sat knotted at 0-0 headed into the fourth frame. Starting lefthander Matt Bezdicek retired the Hastings' hitters in order in both the first and third stanza and dialed a trio of strikeouts through the first nine outs. Carter Gullickson meanwhile reached in his first at-bat while Kyler Halverson ensued with a single in the third frame, however; DWU recorded the first damage in the top half of the fourth inning.
Gullickson led off the stanza with a double en route to multiple hits and a run scored, and Bezdicek continued the promising inning with a base-on balls. Wyatt Hunt, who paced the Tigers (9-18, 3-11 GPAC) with three hits, capitalized with a single to plate the first two run of the afternoon as both Bezdicek and Gullickson scored.
The Broncos (5-25, 1-13 GPAC) awakened nevertheless in the bottom half of the fifth inning with a lead off single and an RBI knock off the bat of Cory Koranda to match the score at 2-2. DWU briefly reclaimed the advantage, 3-2, in the sixth frame thanks to an RBI single from Tiger infielder Drew Kitchens, yet the game remained tied, 3-3, to start the eighth inning. A Luke LeMay walk and a fielder's choice managed by Cameron Quigley plated Dakota Wesleyan's fourth run of the opener, though Hastings stole the walk-off, 5-4 victory in the bottom of the ninth frame.
Bezdicek worked seven strikeouts in the start in seven complete innings of action while Hunt and Gullickson created the energy at the plate with five of DWU's seven hits.
Fully alert, both offenses erupted in the doubleheader finale beginning with Dakota Wesleyan in the top half of the first inning, and DWU scored a pair of runs to take a quick 2-0 edge. Gullickson singled while Bradley Skorczewski reached via a base-on balls as the Tiger hitters patiently dialed seven walks in the contest including four in the opening stanza.
HAS answered back with a run of its own in the bottom of the first frame, though Sioux Falls native Jacob Glovich used a strikeout to escape the early jam. The sophomore righthander clocked seven strikeouts through six innings of work and surrendered just two walks in the outing.
Dakota Wesleyan added two more runs in the second inning which started with a base-on balls before both Kitchens and Quigley scored on a Broncos' wild pitch, and DWU led 4-3 in the middle of the second stanza. Hastings used four runs on five hits in the bottom half of the second, however; to take a short-lived 5-4 advantage. Kitchens and the DWU offense ultimately tallied a trio of runs to start the third frame in the final scoring of the afternoon, and head coach Charlie Dubanoski and company solidified the 7-5 road victory.
Glovich earned the victory, and Troy Wilhelm collected the save with a dominant appearance in the bottom half of the seventh inning as the veteran relief pitcher struck out three consecutive HAS batters to end the game. Four Tigers registered 2-or-more hits while Quigley and Kitchens scored a pair of runs.
UP NEXT
The Tigers conclude the four-game series versus Hastings College with another doubleheader slated for 1 p.m. tomorrow from Duncan Field in Hastings, Neb.