Mitchell, S.D. –
Dakota Wesleyan University baseball hosted this year's "Battle of the Tigers" at Drake Field in Mitchell, S.D., facing off against the No. 14 Doane University Tigers in a GPAC matchup. In game one, Doane held onto the extra innings win after DWU had the lead through seven innings. In the tenth inning, Doane had two runs put on the board for the 6-4 win. Game two, Dakota Wesleyan only had four hits while Doane put up nine runs on eleven hits for the 9-0 win. Game three saw DWU with a one run lead through the first three innings, but Doane showed some grit, scoring two runs in the fourth and shutting DWU out for the remainder of the seven-inning game for a 2-1 win. Dakota Wesleyan looked to steal the fourth game, once again having a one run lead through three innings. Doane took the lead back late and put away any DWU comeback attempt. Dakota Wesleyan would lose the fourth contest 6-4.
Dakota Wesleyan on the outside looking in for a GPAC playoff berth needed a couple upset wins against No. 14 Doane on their home ground. Mitchell Sand got the start in game one and always gave his team a solid chance to pull or steal a game. Sand delivered just that with his seven innings, four runs, and season-high 10 strikeout performance. Dakota Wesleyan led and did most of their damage early in the game plating two runs in the second and third innings, but then was held scoreless for the remainder of the contest when Doane made a pitching change. Sand was in complete control of his whole performance and only made a couple mistakes, which three resulted in solo home runs, resulting in three of his four earned runs.
At the plate Lane Darrow had a big time two run triple that gave DWU their first lead at 2-1. Later in the third inning Oscar Pravecek and Nathan Meyers increased that lead to 4-1 with their RBI singles. This is when the Tigers offense went cold and Doane used a solo shot and two-run shot in the seventh inning to tie things up. Both teams went scoreless in the eighth and ninth innings, sending the game to the tenth in a contest that was supposed to be just seven. In the tenth Doane got a double that was just over the outstretched glove of Darrow, resulting in two runs to score. Dakota Wesleyan was not able to answer in the bottom half, leading to a 6-4 extra inning loss.
Seth Christiansen closed game one and would get the nod in game two as well. Dakota Wesleyan struggled at the plate, only recording four hits in the game and being kept off the scoreboard for a 9-0 loss. Michael Zeman had two hits in the contest while Christiansen and Caleb Meyers had one each. Doane outhit DWU 11-4 in the game and Dakota Wesleyan committed three errors.
Alexander Mizsak started on the bump for DWU in the first game on Sunday and recorded three strikeouts in the first inning. Dakota Wesleyan put up the first run of the day with Caleb Meyers earning an RBI in his first at bat of the game. The Tigers struggled to get any more runners on base after getting three hits from the first three batters while Doane was able to get two runs on the board in the top of the fourth. Sixth inning, Logan Miller came in to pitch for DWU and was able to get out of a jam after Doane had runners get on at second and third. Brady Christoffels reached second on a throwing error but DWU was unable to score him to tie the score. Doane would win the third game of the weekend series 2-1.
In the fourth and final game of the four-game series, Dexter Payne got the nod to start on the mound for DWU. After a pair of errors, the DWU Tigers got out of the first inning only giving up one run after a stellar double play by right fielder Caleb Meyers and catcher Ryan McGinnis, where Meyers caught the fly ball and threw a seed to the dish for the third out. In the bottom of the second with Oscar Pravecek on first, Carter Olek crushed the two-strike pitch to left to give DWU a 2-1 lead over Doane in the bottom of the second. Both teams put runs on the board in the fourth, making the score tied up at 3-3 after Olek earned another RBI after he doubled to right. With Logan Davis on the mound after striking out the third batter in the fourth, he would put Doane down in order in the fifth and then limit the damage in the sixth as he rung up the third out after giving up one run.
DWU's final score would come from Olek again as he hit another home run in the seventh inning, his second of the game. Doane had scored two runs in that same inning and after Olek's second home run, the score was in favor of the Doane Tigers, 6-4. DWU had an opportunity to tie the game in the bottom of the ninth with runners on first and second with two outs. The final batter, Bradley Skorczewski, was rung up and this gave Doane the victory in game four.
Up Next: The Dakota Wesleyan Baseball team hits the road for a single non-conference game against Dakota State Tuesday, April 23rd followed by a double header road matchup Thursday, April 25th against Mount Marty in Yankton, S.D.
