MIAC BASEBALL PLAYOFFS PAGE
MIAC PLAYOFF SEEDING STORY
NORTHFIELD, Minn. -- The Augsburg College baseball team will compete for the third time in school history in the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Playoffs, clinching a playoff berth with a doubleheader split at St. Olaf College on Thursday afternoon at Carlander Stadium.
With a 4-2 win over St. Olaf in the first game on Thursday, Augsburg (23-14 overall, 11-9 MIAC) clinched the No. 3-seed in this season's six-team, single-elimination event. St. Olaf (20-15 overall, 9-9 MIAC) scored a 7-2 victory in the second game.
Augsburg will face No. 6-seed St. Mary's (19-16 overall, 10-10 MIAC) in the
MIAC Playoffs' second quarterfinal game on Friday (5/10) at 7 p.m. at
Veterans Field in Minnetonka, Minn., with the winner advancing to face No. 2-seed Concordia-Moorhead (18-14 overall, 11-9 MIAC) in a semifinal on Saturday (5/11) at 6 p.m. The playoff championship game will be held on Sunday (5/12) at 1 p.m., with the winner receiving the MIAC's automatic bid to the NCAA Division III national tournament.
It's the third time that Augsburg has reached the MIAC Playoffs since the postseason tournament began in 2000. Augsburg reached the conference postseason final round in each of its two prior appearances, in 2005 and 2010.
Louie LaChapelle (SR, Eagan, Minn.) went 5-for-7 in the doubleheader -- 3-for-4 with a double and a run scored in the first game, and 2-for-3 in the second game -- to lead the Auggies in Thursday's split with St. Olaf.
Adam Carl (JR, Eagan, Minn.),
Brent Kolbow (SR, Forest Lake, Minn.) and
Ryan Sward (SR, Eagan, Minn.) had two hits each in the doubleheader, with Kolbow scoring a run in each game.
Trailing 2-0 after five innings in the first game, Augsburg scored all four of its runs in the top of the sixth inning, sending eight batters to the plate.
Zach Pavlisick (SR, Phoenix, Ariz./Central HS) grounded out to drive in
Abe Welckle (JR, Minneapolis, Minn./South HS), Kolbow hit an RBI single to drive home LaChapelle, and
Gordon Kappers (SO, Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville North HS) hit a two-run single, driving home Kolbow and
Gary Mariscal (JR, Savage, Minn./Prior Lake HS).
Eren Cur (SR, Plymouth, Minn./Wayzata HS) earned the pitching win for the Auggies, striking out two while giving up six hits and no walks in five innings of work.
Luke Chinn (FY, Burnsville, Minn.) claimed his first collegiate save in relief, striking out two while not allowing a hit or walk in two innings of scoreless relief.
St. Olaf scored a run in the third inning, when Chris Paradise (JR, Mantorville, Minn./Kasson-Mantorville HS) drove in Brady Sand (SR, Eau Claire, Wis./Eau Claire Memorial HS) on a single. The Oles scored in the fifth inning, when Paradise again plated Sand on a single.
Augsburg struck first in the second game, when Mariscal singled home
Billy Brookshaw (FY, Prescott, Wis.) in the second inning, but St. Olaf scored seven unanswered runs to pull away. Augsburg also scored in the fifth inning, when Carl singled to drive in Kolbow.
The Oles scored four runs in the third inning, with Jake Schmiesing (SR, Stillwater, Minn.) and Sam Maus (JR, Northfield, Minn.) hitting RBI singles, and Nik Kulla (JR, Lakeville, Minn./Lakeville North HS) driving in two runs on a fielder's choice. Three more runs came across in the fourth inning, with Maus hitting a run-scoring double and Kulla hitting a two-run single.
Alex Lampert (SO, Edina, Minn.) pitched a complete-game victory for the Oles, striking out three while allowing three walks and seven hits.
2013 MIAC Baseball Playoffs
At Veterans Field, Minnetonka, Minn. (Directions - Google Maps)
Quarterfinal Games - Friday, May 10:
No. 4 Bethel (23-14, 10-10 MIAC) vs. No. 5 St. John's (18-15, 9-9 MIAC), 3 p.m.
No. 3 Augsburg (23-14, 11-9 MIAC) vs. No. 6 St. Mary's (19-16, 10-10 MIAC), 7 p.m.
Semifinal Games - Saturday, May 11:
No. 1 St. Thomas (31-5, 19-1 MIAC) vs. Bethel/St. John's winner, 2 p.m.
No. 2 Concordia-Moorhead (18-14, 11-9 MIAC) vs. Augsburg/St. Mary's winner, 6 p.m.
Championship Game - Sunday, May 12:
Semifinal winners meet, 1 p.m.
