BEMIDJI -- The Bemidji State baseball team fell short in a pair of tightly contested games Wednesday at the BSU baseball field. Minot State prevailed by scores of 8-6 and 4-3 to sweep the doubleheader between the two Beaver teams.
BSU (7-30, 6-26 NSIC) took an early 1-0 lead in the first inning of a back-and-forth game one on an RBI groundout by Isaiah Grancorvitz. MiSU (22-14, 20-11 NSIC) answered with a three-run second to take a 3-1 lead.
Parker Borg socked a two-run homer in the third and Michael O’Malley drove in another run on a double in the fourth to return a 4-3 lead for Bemidji State.
A five-run fifth inning proved to be the difference for Minot State. The visiting Beavers delivered three straight two-out RBI singles and added two more runs on a wild pitch to go ahead 8-4.
The home Beavers loaded the bases with no outs in the bottom of the fifth. Tom Keohen singled home the team’s lone run of the inning. Borg chipped in another run on an RBI single in the sixth as BSU again left the bases loaded. Bemidji State went down in order in the seventh as Minot State clinched the win.
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Borg and Sam Kalberer each finished with three hits for the game. Will Lavin took the loss on the mound after starting and surrendering five runs on six hits over 4 2/3 innings.
MiSU struck first in game two as a pair of singles spotted the visitors a 3-0 lead in the top of the second. Derek Dolezal plated the first run for Bemidji State in the bottom half of the frame on an RBI groundout before Brooks Bachmann’s RBI single cut the lead to 3-2.
Jake Collins smacked an RBI double to left field in the third to score the eventual game-winning run.
BSU kept Minot State at bay from the plate, but were unable to put many runners in scoring position to mount a comeback. Grancorvitz’s solo homer in the eighth narrowed the deficit to 4-3, but the Beavers were retired in order in the ninth to end the game.
Kalberer pushed his on-base streak to 27 games in the nightcap, the longest streak for Bemidji State since at least 2007.
Borg suffered the loss on the mound after giving up four runs on five hits over four innings. Kenny Morris and Travis Carruth pitched five shutout innings in relief.
BSU closes the regular season with a three-game home series this weekend against Minnesota Duluth. The teams will meet in a doubleheader at 1:30 p.m. on Friday, May 7, before playing a single game at noon on Saturday, May 8.
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Minot State 8, Bemidji State 6
MSU 030 050 0 -- 8-9-1
BSU 102 111 0 -- 6-10-2
WP: Newman (4 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 2 BB, 2 K)
LP: Lavin (4.2 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 6 BB, 5 K)
S: Kern (7)
Minot State 4, Bemidji State 3
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MSU 031 000 000 -- 4-9-0
BSU 020 000 010 -- 3-5-2
WP: Gallagher (7 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 7 K)
LP: Borg (4 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 3 BB, 4 K)
S: Kern (8)
