SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Augustana) — The Augustana baseball team earned a dominant win before marching back from an eight run deficit to earn a walk-off win and complete a four-game sweep over Winona State at Ronken Field on Sunday afternoon. The first game of the day completed a three-game NSIC series and game two was a non-conference affair.
The Vikings move to 24-11 overall and 18-7 in the NSIC while Winona State falls to 16-19, 12-13.
Game 1: Augustana 13, Winona State 3, 8 inningsCarter Heinsch continued his recent tear with four hits while Troy Berg had four hits, a home run, four RBI and three runs scored. Trevor Winterstein and Sam Siegel had three hits apiece while Ryan Clementi (3 RBI) and Joshua Koskie had two each.
Adam Diedrich got the start, getting an out while allowing two runs. Ethan Cole was dominant as the long arm, allowing an unearned run and three hits while striking out eight in 6 2/3 innings. Joel Van De Stroet struck out a pair in the eighth inning to wrap up the day.
The Warriors struck first, scoring two runs in the first three batters for the early lead. Jason Axelberg led the second inning with a bunt single and got to third on a Troy Berg double to left. Clementi got the job done on the next pitch, scoring both on a single to even the scoring.
In the bottom of the third, Siegel reached on a one out single and Berg had a two out bunt hit to get Siegel into scoring position. Clementi, again, got the job done, driving a single through the left side to bring in Siegel and give AU a 3-2 lead.
Berg would end up stealing third to get runners on the corners, paying off when Koskie singled to left to score Berg and grow the lead. Winterstein kept it rolling after fighting off six straight full count pitches with an infield single, scoring Clementi before a throwing error on the play scored Koskie.
After a pitching change, Heinsch gave the fresh arm a warm reception with a double to right center, scoring Winterstein and Hines followed with an RBI single of his own to round out the third inning strike and give AU an 8-2 lead.
The offense stalled on both sides until the sixth inning. Ragan Pinnow and Siegel each walked to open the sixth. After a strikeout, both came home on a two-run double off the bat of Berg to make it 10-2 AU.
In the seventh, WSU scraped across an unearned run to get within seven. The Vikings struck again in the bottom of the eighth to finish off the run-rule shortened game. Pinnow led off with a single and got to third on a Siegel single. A passed ball allowed Pinnow to score and Berg sent a blast to left to seal the deal.
Game 2: Augustana 13, Winona State 12 (Non-conference)Berg closed the day with a walk-off single to close a wild non-conference matchup. Winterstein, Heinsch and Kobe Eikmeier had three hits apiece while Berg, Siegel and Pinnow each had two.
Ethan Hoffman, Aidan Torpey, Tom Sun, Josiah Petersen, Jadon Bast and Ryan Clementi completed the first five innings on the mound. Drew Ball shoved through the final four frames with four strikeouts and didn’t allow a hit to earn his first win of the season.
Winterstein opened his 10th consecutive game on base with a single and Heinsch walked before a double steal moved them into scoring position. A dropped pop fly scored Winterstein and Siegel delivered an RBI knock to give AU a 2-0 lead.
The Warriors marched back with two runs in the second inning. In the bottom of the fourth, Bryson Bohannon drew a one-out walk and Kobe Eikmeier sent a two-run blast to left, his first career home run, to give AU a 4-2 lead.
In the fifth inning, the Warriors tallied 10 runs on nine hits to take a commanding 12-4 lead.
In the bottom of the sixth, the Vikings began to chip at their deficit. With the bases loaded and one out, Heinsch walked and Berg was hit by a pitch to bring in two runs. After a pitching change, Pinnow drove a single up the middle to score a pair and Siegel brought in another run on a fielder’s choice to bring AU within 12-9.
Cinema came in the seventh, starting with a Koskie leadoff single and a one-out single from Eikmeier put runners on the corners. Winterstein got a job done with a groundout that scored a run and Heinsch delivered a two-run blast to the opposite field to even the game at 12-12.
Ball continued his excellent outing with a 1-2-3 eighth inning and a strikeout to close the ninth and keep the game tied. In the bottom of the ninth, Winterstein and Heinsch each singled to get runners on the corners and Berg singled to walk-off the Warriors and complete the four-game sweep.
The Vikings continue their home stretch Tuesday afternoon with a doubleheader against Wayne State, with first pitch scheduled for 4 p.m.
