SAINT PAUL, MINN.—For the first time since 2017, the No. 1 seed Bethel University baseball team open the MIAC Playoffs 0-1 following an 8-6 (11 innings) loss to No. 4 seed Saint Mary's (Minn.) at CHS Field in Saint Paul on Thursday afternoon.
The Royals fall to 29-9, and will square off against No. 3 seed Saint John's (Minn.) in an elimination game at CHS Field tomorrow, Friday, May 8 at 12 p.m. A Bethel victory will secure them a spot in game five tomorrow at 6 p.m.
The Cardinals, who improve to 25-15, will face No. 2 seed Macalester at CHS Field tomorrow, Friday, May 8 at 3 p.m.
Saint Mary's 8, Bethel 6 (11 innings)
Both teams combined for five home runs. Bethel struck first with a pair of second-inning solo home runs from Tyler Allshouse and Ben Trucke, which gave them a 2-0 lead.Â
The Royals doubled their lead to 4-0 with a pair of third-inning runs, when
Hayden Sperbeck reached on an error and
Oran Hinkle doubled to put runners on the corners.
Sam Abbas drove in both of them with a single, which pushed Bethel's lead to 4-0.
The Cardinals responded with five runs over the next five innings, three of which occurred in the eighth inning. Sam Knickerbocker registered an RBI single in the fifth inning and an RBI double in an eighth inning that also resulted in Daniel Sherman's solo home run, which engineered the Cardinals' 5-4 lead through eight innings. Alex Hanneman added another solo home run for Saint Mary's in the ninth inning, which pushed their advantage to 6-4.Â
Ben Trucke's eighth home run of the season and second of the game, a two-run shot in the bottom of the ninth tied things 6-6. Tyler Allshouse, who reached on an error, was on base for Trucke.
The 11th inning saw the Cardinals turn a pair of Royals errors into two runs, which secured them a 6-4 win.
Both teams combined for 28 hits. Drew Girtz finished 4-for-6 with one double for the Royals, while Trucke was 2-for-5 with two home runs, three RBI, and two runs scored. Tyler Allshouse went 2-for-5 with one home run, two runs scored, and one RBI. Also going 2-for-5 was Oran Hinkle, who had one triple and one double.
Saint Mary's had 15 hits. Daniel Sherman led the way with a 3-for-4 outing that included one home run, and a sacrifice bunt.
Girtz pitched the first 4.0 innings, where he allowed two hits, five walks, and notched six strikeouts. Ted Hohn, Cavan Banks, Aiden Eckert, Zach Johnson, and Brandon Witter represented a Bethel pitching staff that combined for 11 strikeouts.
