Notables
-Senior Day for St. Scholastica
-Liebren records two RBI base hits in game one
-Taival has not allowed an earned run in each of his last two starts
-Martin has won his last two starts, going at least eight innings in each
-Schelonka extends hit streak to nine games
DULUTH, Minn. (
csssaints.com) - The St. Scholastica baseball team won both games of a doubleheader Monday over St. Olaf College at Wade Stadium. Both games were highlighted by outstanding pitching performances from
Grant Taival (Lake Elmo, Minn./Mahtomedi HS) and
T.J. Martin (Minneapolis, Minn./Academy of Holy Angels), both of whom recorded complete games. This is St. Scholastica's first doubleheader sweep of a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) team.
Game 1: CSS 3, St. Olaf 0
The Saints' bats came out firing in the bottom of the first to lead off the scoring.
Luke Schemenauer (Chippewa Falls, Wis./Chippewa Falls HS) hit a one-out single to get a man on early for CSS. He would score on an RBI single by
Jake Schelonka (Sartell, Minn./Sartell HS) to give the Saints a 1-0 lead.
For CSS,
Grant Taival (Lake Elmo, Minn./Mahtomedi HS) was given the start for the first game. The senior pitcher did an excellent job keeping the Oles (14-14, 8-8 MIAC) off the bases, especially early on, surrendering his first hit of the ballgame in the fourth inning.
In the bottom of the fourth inning, the Saints tallied on another run. Schelonka recorded another base hit to lead off the inning, then stole second to give the Saints a runner in scoring position. Schelonka scored on an RBI single courtesy of
Miles Liebren (Saint Paul, Minn./Saint Paul Central HS) to extend CSS' lead, 2-0.
Taival kept the Oles off the basepaths, only surrendering three hits all game while only walking two.
The Saints tallied another insurance run on yet another RBI single by Liebren, this time scoring Schemenauer, making the game 3-0.
Taival stayed in for the seventh and final inning of game one and was able to get the job done, shutting down the Oles once and for good, giving CSS the game one win by a score of 3-0.
The six hits for the Saints came from three batters as Schemenauer, Schelonka and Liebren all had a pair of hits.
Game 2: CSS 4, St. Olaf 3
In game two of the day, the Saints gave the ball to
T.J. Martin (Minneapolis, Minn./Academy of Holy Angels) to see if CSS could get another strong outing from its pitching staff. The junior southpaw was able to keep the Oles off the bases early, striking out three batters through the first three innings.
In the bottom of the third inning, the Saints cracked the scoreboard first.
Mitchell Novak (Stillwater, Minn./Stillwater HS) led off the inning with a triple down the left field line and was driven in by
Matt Tautges (Fort Ripley, Minn./Pierz HS) on an RBI single to give the Saints an early 1-0 lead. Tautges stole second in the next at-bat and eventually stole home on a double steal, giving the Saints a 2-0 lead.
St. Olaf added three runs in the top of the fourth inning, coming off a three-run home run that gave the Oles a 3-2 lead.
The Saints' bats were silenced through the next two innings. In the sixth inning, the Saints recaptured the lead.
Mitchell Olson (Eden Prairie, Minn./Eden Prairie HS) led off the inning with a single, then advanced to second on a wild pitch. Olson scored on an RBI single by Schelonka to tie the game back up at 3-3. The Saints were not done however, when Schelonka scored on an RBI single by
Zach Harding (Red Wing, Minn./Red Wing HS) to give the Saints the lead, 4-3.
Martin kept dominating the Oles' lineup, as they had no answer for the southpaw. In the top of the ninth inning, Martin allowed the leadoff batter on, but then picked him off during the next at-bat. He proceeded to sit down the next St. Olaf hitters as the Saints competed the sweep with the 4-3 victory.
Martin struck out six and scattered four hits in the complete-game victory.
Tautges and Olson led the Saints offense with a pair of hits each.
Up Next
The Saints (13-15, 8-8 MIAC) will be back in action tomorrow as they will travel to St. Peter to take on the Gusties from Gustavus Adolphus College. First pitch is scheduled for 2:30 p.m.
