OMAHA, Neb. – The Mavericks split a last-second doubleheader with North Dakota State today, winning game one 7-4 before losing game two 8-5.
Omaha will end the weekend at 3-15 overall and 1-2 in Summit League play, while the Bison are now 5-14 with a 2-1 conference record.
Game 1
Omaha struck first in game one when Tyler Bishop led off the second inning with a double down the left field line and was driven in two batters later by Haiden Hunt who also ripped a double to left. On the mound, Caleb Riedel held the Bison hitless through the first three innings, before allowing his first run of the game in the top of the fourth. the Mavericks responded in the bottom of the inning with another run as Hunt drove in his second of the day.
NDSU would briefly take a 3-2 lead in the top of the fifth after plating two more, though, a sac fly from Matt Goetzmann in the bottom of the inning got Omaha back within one. The Bison threatened to score again in the sixth, loading the bases with two outs, only for Joe Hackmann to come in and strand all three with a strikeout. In the seventh, NDSU would again load the bases with no outs but could only manage a single run as Hackmann struck out his final two batters to strand three.
Now down 5-3 in the bottom of the seventh, the Mavericks tied the game on back-to-back doubles from Noah Greise and Tyler Bishop, the latter bringing home two. Omaha would then take a 7-5 lead in the eighth with Goetzmann and Grant Sommers each driving in one. In the top of the ninth, Luke Gainer, who already threw a 1-2-3 eighth, again retired the side in order to complete the six-out save for the Mavericks.
Game 2
NDSU got off to a fast start in the nightcap, getting three runs in the top of the first. In the bottom of the inning, Omaha got two runs of its own thanks to a two-run triple from Bishop. The Mavericks would get another RBI triple in the bottom of the second, this time from Goetzmann, before Sommers reached on an error by the third baseman to allow Omaha to take a 5-3 lead.
The next inning, however, the Bison would take the lead back and hold it for the rest of the night as the first six batters all reached base, culminating in three runs scored. After a rough third inning in relief, Brayden Curtis settled down and proceeded to throw three scoreless innings, stranding four runners in that span. Reed Scott then came in and tossed a scoreless seventh.
In the eighth, NDSU would load the bases once again, only to be held scoreless by Gage Ingram who struck out his first batter and induced a hard liner right to second baseman Zach Lechnir to escape the inning. The Bison would, however, score two more in the top of the ninth and go on to hold off the Mavericks in the bottom of the inning to take game two.
Inside the Box Score
The Mavericks totaled nine extra base hits between both games, with six coming in game one alone.
Mavericks pitchers stranded a combined 22 runners today and struck out 21.
Greise (5-for-9), Bishop (3-for-6), Zach Lechnir (2-for-6), and Drew Lechnir (2-for-8) were the only Mavericks to record at least one hit in each game, while Goetzmann (3 RBI) and Bishop (4 RBI) were the only two to record an RBI in each game.
On Deck
The Mavericks are on the road all of next week, beginning with their first of two games this year against interstate rival Nebraska on Tuesday at 6 p.m., before ending the week with three games at Northern Colorado starting on Friday at 3 p.m.
