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Brandon Scheidler went 3-for-4 and scored the winning run for the No. 5 Pointers against St. Thomas. (More photos)
By Ryan Coleman, D3sports.com
UW-Stevens Point squeaked out a pair of one-run victories against two of the Midwest Region's top baseball teams to open the season on Monday at the Metrodome in Minneapolis.
The Pointers, ranked fifth in the NCAA Division III by the American Baseball Coaches Association, beat 18th-ranked St. Thomas 4-3 in the opener and then held off St. Scholastica 7-6 in the second game (photo gallery). UW-Stevens Point has played both schools each of the past two years in the NCAA tournament, beating St. Thomas each time and losing twice to St. Scholastica.
UW-Stevens Point had solid pitching performances in both games as Mike Thrun allowed just two hits and one earned run over five innings in the opening game and Brandon Hemstead pitched six and one-third innings of two-hit relief in the nightcap. Matt Mehne pitched the ninth inning of each game for a pair of saves.
Against St. Thomas, Brandon Scheidler was 3-for-4, scored what proved to be the winning run in the seventh, and drove in another on a sacrifice fly to the warning track. Doug Coe went 2-for-3, including a two-out RBI single in the third. Justin Bushong had a two-out RBI single in the sixth, and Joel Hojnacki tripled and scored in the third.
Mark Bolan's two-out RBI triple in the top of the eighth pulled St. Thomas within 4-3. Dan Leslie followed at the plate but Ryan Byrnes made a sliding catch on his sinking liner to keep the tying run off the board. Travis Kempf added three innings of three-hit relief for the Pointers.
In the second game, UW-Stevens Point rallied from an early 5-0 deficit as St. Scholastica scored four unearned runs in the second inning, highlighted by a three-run triple by Steve Kraushaar. The Pointers scored all seven of their runs in the top of the third inning as Tim Schlosser drilled a three-run double, Doug Coe hit a run-scoring single and Stewart Larsen followed with a two-run double for a 6-5 lead. Larsen later scored on a dropped third strike following a two-out strikeout.
The Saints mustered little offense against Hemstead, who allowed singles in the third and fourth innings and then retired his last eight batters faced. Mehne allowed a leadoff single in the ninth, but induced three flyouts to end the game. Coe finished 2-for-4 as the Pointers had six of their eight hits in the third inning.
The Pointers, ranked fifth in the NCAA Division III by the American Baseball Coaches Association, beat 18th-ranked St. Thomas 4-3 in the opener and then held off St. Scholastica 7-6 in the second game (photo gallery). UW-Stevens Point has played both schools each of the past two years in the NCAA tournament, beating St. Thomas each time and losing twice to St. Scholastica.
UW-Stevens Point had solid pitching performances in both games as Mike Thrun allowed just two hits and one earned run over five innings in the opening game and Brandon Hemstead pitched six and one-third innings of two-hit relief in the nightcap. Matt Mehne pitched the ninth inning of each game for a pair of saves.
Against St. Thomas, Brandon Scheidler was 3-for-4, scored what proved to be the winning run in the seventh, and drove in another on a sacrifice fly to the warning track. Doug Coe went 2-for-3, including a two-out RBI single in the third. Justin Bushong had a two-out RBI single in the sixth, and Joel Hojnacki tripled and scored in the third.
Mark Bolan's two-out RBI triple in the top of the eighth pulled St. Thomas within 4-3. Dan Leslie followed at the plate but Ryan Byrnes made a sliding catch on his sinking liner to keep the tying run off the board. Travis Kempf added three innings of three-hit relief for the Pointers.
In the second game, UW-Stevens Point rallied from an early 5-0 deficit as St. Scholastica scored four unearned runs in the second inning, highlighted by a three-run triple by Steve Kraushaar. The Pointers scored all seven of their runs in the top of the third inning as Tim Schlosser drilled a three-run double, Doug Coe hit a run-scoring single and Stewart Larsen followed with a two-run double for a 6-5 lead. Larsen later scored on a dropped third strike following a two-out strikeout.
The Saints mustered little offense against Hemstead, who allowed singles in the third and fourth innings and then retired his last eight batters faced. Mehne allowed a leadoff single in the ninth, but induced three flyouts to end the game. Coe finished 2-for-4 as the Pointers had six of their eight hits in the third inning.
Permalink | Mar 06, 2007