Kieran Ripken-
The Gustavus baseball team hosted Concordia for a doubleheader on Saturday and the matchup of MIAC teams did not disappoint. Gustavus won the first game handily 11-6 and conquered the seemingly insurmountable odds of a seven-run deficit and won 12-11 in the second game. The Gusties improved to 15-12 and 7-5 in the MIAC on the season.
In the first of two games, the Gusties stormed out to a commanding lead in the bottom of the first. Senior Bryce Novak and Junior Brady Schmitz each singled in consecutive at-bats at the top of the order, who were then brought home courtesy of a triple from Senior Gavin Baker. An RBI single from Senior Chris Knowles, an RBI triple from First-year Danny Gavin, and a sacrifice fly from Junior Isaac Becker gave the Gusties a comfortable 5-0 lead after the first inning.
“Something that we have done [recently] is just to remind ourselves to have fun and play loose. At times this season we have put too much pressure on ourselves and this weekend we went in with a different mindset,” Knowles said.
The Cobbers made a dent in the lead with a two-run homer in the third, but an RBI single from First-year Brayden Kohls raised the score to 6-2. The Gustie lead evaporated quickly in the fourth inning as the Cobbers scored four runs on four hits.
In the bottom of the fourth, Sophomore Sam Schneider reached base on a hit by pitch and Novak followed with a walk. With two runners on base, Schmitz unleashed a three-run homer to right field, bringing his teammates home and regaining the lead at 9-6.
“It was definitely a high-pressure situation with runners on base and I was just trying to put the ball in play to hopefully get one run in. But I was really excited and relieved to be able to come through for the team with a home run in a situation like that,” Schmitz said.
In the bottom of the sixth, Gavin singled and scored Knowles and Baker to put the game out of reach for the Cobbers in what would be the final score, 11-6.
Senior Adam Biewen earned the start for the Gusties and tallied his fourth win on the season, striking out eight in six innings. Sophomore Jackson Thielen closed the door on the Cobbers in the seventh and earned the save, striking out three.
In the second game of the doubleheader, the Cobbers constructed a 5-0 lead across the first four innings. The Gusties chipped away at the deficit in the fifth, scoring four runs on RBI singles from Schmitz and Knowles and a two-run triple from Baker to close the gap 5-4. The Cobbers responded in a big way in the sixth, scoring six runs to seemingly put the game out of reach at 11-4.
In the seventh, Knowles hit an RBI single with the bases loaded and Gavin nearly cleared them with a three-run triple to bridge the score within three runs. The Cobbers deemed a pitching change appropriate in an effort to stop the damage, but Kohls made the Cobbers pay with a two-run homer to bring the score to 11-10.
“We did a great job of staying confident and staying within ourselves and not changing our approach at the plate. Our pitchers did a great job of shutting it down and holding them and the hitters just took it one pitch at a time,” Knowles said.
In the top of the eighth, Junior Hunter Sheehan held down the fort and tossed a scoreless eighth inning. In the bottom of the eighth, Novak doubled and scored Senior Mitch Casperson, tying the game at 11. A bunt from Schmitz and a throwing error from the Cobbers pitcher scored Novak on the game-winning run.
“What you can’t see on paper is our will to not give up. Things have not always been going our way or balls may have not been falling, but we continue to fight to the end,” Novak said.
It felt like déjà vu for the Cobbers in the ninth as Thielen returned to the mound with a save opportunity and converted, registering his second save of the season to clinch a seemingly-improbable comeback victory for the Gusties. Sheehan tallied his first win of the year.
“I would say that the team chemistry and camaraderie [are] at an all-time high right now. After struggling at the start of conference play, we’ve started to change our mindset into playing loose, having fun, and being there for each other,” Schmitz said.
“It was exciting to come back and win the game and definitely needed that extra motivation to carry over moving forward into this week’s games,” Novak said.
Gustavus will host Macalester on Saturday, April 27th for a doubleheader. Start times are at 1:00 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. The Gusties have not surrendered a loss against the Scots since 2019, outscoring their MIAC opponent 58-8 in six games over the span. Last season, the Gusties dominated the Scots 26-2 in a doubleheader (12-0; 14-2).