Notables
-First meeting between the two programs
-Zwak and T. Bernsdorf have reached base in eight straight games
-Neutzling hits third home run of the season
AUBURNDALE, Fla. (
csssaints.com) – The St. Scholastica baseball team went 1-1 on Friday against No. 21 Rowan University (N.J.) at the Russmatt Invitational.
Game 1: #21 Rowan 7, CSS 4
The Saints opened the day plating four runs in the first inning, but could not hold off the Profs in a 7-4 defeat.
Joey Zwak (Duluth, Minn. /Duluth East HS ) walked to leadoff the bottom of the first, proceeded to steal second, advanced third on a wild pitch and scored on a throwing error to put the Saints up 1-0 before an out had been recorded.
Later in the inning,
Steven Neutzling (St. Cloud, Minn./St. Cloud Cathedral ) hit a two-run home run to make it 3-0.
Michael Grove (Forest Lake, Minn./Edina HS ) got
Trevor Bernsdorf (Elmer, Minn./Floodwood HS ) across home plate to complete the scoring in the inning with the Saints in front 4-0.
A two-out bases-loaded walk put Rowan on the board in the top of the second. The Profs followed with a RBI double in the third to cut the CSS lead to 4-2.
After CSS had runners at second and third with one out in the bottom of the frame and came away with nothing, Rowan had a key two-out rally in the fourth to take the lead. The Saints picked up two quick outs in the fourth, but a walk followed by three consecutive singles gave the Profs a 5-4 advantage.
It was another two-out rally in the top of the sixth that pushed two more runs across for the Profs to extend the margin to 7-4. CSS had only one base runner the rest of way in the 7-4 loss.
Dan Hansen (Brooklyn Center, Minn./Park Center HS ) picked up the loss in four innings of work. Drew Ryback picked up the win in relief for the Profs.
Tim Munn (Champlin, Minn. /Champlin Park HS ) had two of St. Scholastica's four hits in the loss. CSS had two hits the final six innings of the game. Joe Sadler was 3-for-4 with four RBIs for Rowan.
Game 2: CSS 6, #21 Rowan 3
The second game of the doubleheader saw the Saints again jump out to an early lead, but this time would hold off a late rally from the Profs to earn the split by a final of 6-3.
Zwak again sparked the Saints with a double to begin the game. He later came around to score on a Neutzling groundout. An error by Rowan allowed T. Bernsdorf to score to make it 2-0 CSS after a half inning.
It remained 2-0 until the top of the third when the Saints added to their lead.
Brian Minks (St. Cloud, Minn./St. Cloud Cathedral HS ) drove in
Tyler Duex (Bloomer, Wis./Chippewa Falls HS (UW-Superior) ) with a RBI single. Minks later scored on another Rowan error to put CSS up 4-0.
St. Scholastica made it 5-0 on a Zwak RBI to score Munn in the top of the sixth. Saints starter
Jacob Dzubay (St. Michael, Minn./St. Michael-Albertville HS (Butler) ) was cruising thru five innings, but ran into a little trouble in the sixth. A two-out single put the Profs on the board and then a wild pitch caused another run to score to make it 5-2. However, Dzubay induced a fly out to end the inning.
The Saints got insurance in the seventh, thanks to another Rowan error that scored T. Bernsdorf. With the Saints leading 6-2 entering the bottom frame, the Profs made things interesting in their last at-bat. After one out, a pair of walks and a pair of hits had one run come across and the bases were loaded.
Isaac Rocha (Owatonna, Minn./Owatonna HS) would get a big strikeout for the second out and then got a fly out to give the Saints the 6-3 victory.
Dzubay went six innings, scattering six hits to get the victory. T. Bernsdorf had a pair of RBIs and
Drew Colvard (Little Canada, Minn./Roseville HS ) was 2-for-3 at the plate. Monny Strickland was 3-for-4 to lead the Profs (10-4).
Up Next
The Saints (4-5) finish up their spring trip tomorrow when they face Webster University (Mo.) in Auburndale at the Lake Myrtle Park complex. First pitch is scheduled for 9:30 a.m. (ET).
