For the second time in three games with the Mount Marty Lancers the Dordt Defenders won in the final at-bat, squeezing out an 8-7, nine-inning win on Monday night, April 11 in Sioux Center, Iowa.
The Defenders overcame a three-run deficit to force extra innings and won it in walk-off fashion in the ninth.
Mount Marty scored a run in the first inning but Dordt answered with two unearned runs in the bottom of the inning. Dordt added to the lead with a run in the second but Mount Marty got one back in the third and then scored four in the fourth for a 6-3 lead. Nolan Christianson tripled in Oliver Walczak in the fourth and later scored on a Logan Cline ground out.
Mount Marty answered with a solo homer in the fifth but Dordt got two back in the fifth with Christianson getting a sacrifice fly to tie the game.
Mount Marty threatened in the sixth but Mike Bruell was able to work out of the jam with a popout and a strikeout and the Lancers squandered a leadoff double in the seventh and the game was still tied after seven.
After a scoreless eighth Dordt threatened in the ninth with Dylan Stanley clubbing a double with one out. Tyler Reiss ran for Stanley and came in to score when Aaron Eshelman singled to left field.
THE NUMBERS
Dordt was outhit 16-10.
Dylan Brown got the win in relief as he pitched two innings of scoreless baseball.
Stanley had a double and single with a run batted in and he walked once.
Logan De Vries was 2-4 with a double and a single.
Logan Cline had a double and Nolan Christianson a triple in the win.
Game Two:
Monday’s nightcap outcome was the third game decided by one run between the two teams.
Logan Cline put the Defenders up 1-0 with a leadoff home run off Lancers’ starter Myles Brown in the bottom of the first inning. Cline drove a 1-2, off-speed pitch over the rightfield fence for his seventh home run of the season.
The score remained 1-0 in the Defenders’ favor until Mount Marty pushed two runs across with two outs in the top of the sixth inning. Billy Hancock reached base on a fielders choice, advanced to second after a wild pitch and scored on a bloop single hit by Mason Townsend. Lancers first baseman Kiko Nunez followed with another bloop single, scoring pinch runner Lake Terveer from first, to put Mount Marty in front for good.
THE NUMBERS
The Defenders managed two hits, the solo home run by Cline and a single from Logan DeVries in the second inning.
Brown (5-1) pitched his third complete game of the season for the Lancers; he retired the final 14 batters faced and recorded 11 strikeouts
Logan Horne (2-5) took the hard-luck loss, giving up eight hits and one earned run in six-plus innings. Horne struck out three and walked one
Dylan Brown pitched a scoreless sixth, escaping a two-on, no-out jam.
Six different Lancers players had at least one hit; Mason Townsend and Nathan Robertson both had two hits
NEXT UP
The Defenders are scheduled to play Morningside on Thursday, April 14 for a GPAC doubleheader at Lewis and Clark Stadium in Sioux City, Iowa. First pitch of game one is scheduled for 5pm.
