TULSA, Okla. – South Dakota State jumped out to a 4-0 first-inning lead and went on to defeat North Dakota State, 13-7, Friday night at J.L. Johnson Stadium to earn a spot in the Summit League Baseball Championship title game.
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TULSA, Okla. – South Dakota State jumped out to a 4-0 first-inning lead and went on to defeat North Dakota State, 13-7, Friday night at J.L. Johnson Stadium to earn a spot in the Summit League Baseball Championship title game.
With the win, the Jackrabbits improved to 18-31. SDSU will face top-seeded Oral Roberts in the title game at 1 p.m. today. Should the Jackrabbits win that game, a winner-take-all game would follow immediately to determine the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament.
The Jackrabbits knocked out NDSU starter Mitch O’Connor after only two-thirds of an inning in batting around in the top of the first. Leadoff hitter Anthony Schneider was hit by a pitch and moved to third on a throwing error. After a walk to Nick Smith, Newt Johnson singled up the middle to plate Schneider with the first run of the game. A sacrifice fly by Gus Steiger for the second out of the frame brought home Smith for a 2-0 lead. Skyler Wenninger later greeted reliever Chris Choles with a two-run single to close the first-inning scoring.
After NDSU scored a run in the bottom of the second, the Jackrabbits hung a five-spot on the board in the top of the third as they again sent nine men to the plate. Wenninger recorded his third RBI of the game with a groundout, which was followed by a squeeze bunt by Kolton Michalski that brought home Steiger. Schneider notched a run-scoring single as the lineup turned over for the third time in as many innings, and Smith capped the rally with a two-run double to the left-center gap.
The Bison trimmed the deficit to 9-4 in the bottom of the fourth on a three-run home run down the left- field line by Matt Elsenpeter, but SDSU countered in the top of the fifth as Schneider launched a two-run homer to right to push the lead back to seven at 11-4. It was Schneider’s team-leading eighth home run of the season and second of the tournament.
Meanwhile, Jackrabbit starter Bryce Johnson settled into a groove, closing his seven-inning outing with three scoreless frames. The junior left-hander scattered nine hits, struck out three and walked only one en route to his first victory in an SDSU uniform.
Tony Kjolsing capped the scoring for SDSU with a two-run blast to left field in the eighth. For Kjolsing, it was his seventh round-tripper of the season and his second in three tournament games.
The final Bison tallies came on a solo home run by Tucker Rohde in the eighth and two-run homer by Mason Pierzchalski with two outs in the ninth. Rohde was 4-for-4 to lead NDSU’s 12-hit effort.
Steiger paced the Jackrabbits’ 13-hit attack with a 3-for-4 night at the plate. Schneider, Kjolsing, Josh Falk and Wenninger each finished with a pair of hits.
Notes
The two teams split the season series, 3-3. ... SDSU leads the all-time series, 117-69, including a 6-2 advantage in Summit League postseason games. ... The Jackrabbits will make their fifth appearance in the Summit League Baseball Championship title game(s) and first since winning the tournament title in 2013. ... SDSU improved to 16-16 in nine overall Summit League postseason appearances. ... Steiger recorded his eighth three-hit game and team-leading 20th multi-hit game of the season, extending his hitting streak to nine games. ... Wenninger has tallied 10 of his 14 RBIs for the season during his cur- rent seven-game hitting streak. ... Newt Johnson became the third Jackrabbit player to reach double figures in stolen bases this season, stealing his 10th base in the fifth innings. ... Of Kjolsing’s 15 career home runs, 10 have been hit in the month of May. ... Schneider matched an individual season high for the Jackrabbits with four runs scored. ... Smith has drawn six walks in three tournament games. ... NDSU finished 26-24.
Photo from www.gojacks.com.
