MINNEAPOLIS – Using a late rally including a walk-off single in the bottom of the ninth, the Augsburg University baseball team won game two over Saint Mary's 6-5 to secure a Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference doubleheader split with the Cardinals.

THE BASICS
SCORE: Saint Mary's 3, Augsburg 2; Augsburg 6, Saint Mary's 5
LOCATION: Parade Stadium, Minneapolis, Minn.
RECORDS: Augsburg 7-16 overall (4-7 MIAC), Saint Mary's 8-18 overall (4-10 MIAC)

GAME ONE RECAP
• After the Cardinals got on the board with an RBI single in the top of the first, game one quickly turned into a pitcher's duel with each team getting runners on base but coming up empty in the scoring column.
• The Auggies finally managed to put a run on the board in the bottom of the sixth when Ty Gage (JR, Eagan, Minn./Eagan HS) laced a single through the left side to score Connor Stoik (SR, Eau Claire, Wis./Eau Claire Memorial HS).
• In the top of the seventh, the Cardinals broke the tie once again with a pair of RBI singles to take a 3-1 lead. The Auggies showed potential for a rally in the bottom of the seventh with the first two batters reaching base on a single and a nine-pitch walk. Michael Weiss (SR, Marion, Iowa/Linn-Mar HS) pulled Augsburg within one with a single to right field that scored Brandon Lockhart (SO, Oakdale, Minn./Tartan HS), but Weiss was ultimately thrown out at first on the play. With a runner on third and two outs in a one-run game, Dylan Westcott recorded the final out of the game with a strikeout of Stoik to give the Cardinals a 3-2 victory.
• Jake Skogrand (SO, Shakopee, Minn./Shakopee HS) gave the Auggies a great start on the mound, allowing seven hits and just one run with five strikeouts in six full innings of work. Sean Littmann (SO, Bloomington, Minn./Bloomington HS) took the loss for Augsburg, allowing just one hit, but giving up the tying and go-ahead runs in the seventh. Manny Weiss (FY, Marion, Iowa/Linn-Mar HS) recorded the final two outs for Augsburg in the seventh.

GAME TWO RECAP
• It was the Auggies scoring first in game two when Adam Marshall (SO, Rochester, Minn./Mayo HS) batted in Gage with a single up the middle that scored Gage in the bottom of the second.
• Saint Mary's put together a three-run inning in the fourth to open up a 3-1 advantage, but the Auggies cut the deficit to one in the bottom half of the inning with Carson Tomony (SR, Madison, Wis./Madison East HS) plating Steven Salz (SR, Maple Grove, Minn./Maple Grove HS) on a sacrifice fly to center field.
• The Cardinals restored their two-run lead with one in the eighth, but the Auggies rallied to regain the advantage in the bottom of the same inning. Marshall and Tomony each delivered RBI singles in the inning, bringing Stoik, Wiess, and Gage in to score.
• Saint Mary's took control once again with a run in the ninth to take a 5-4 lead. Skogrand took a leadoff walk to put the winning run on first base where Lance Nayman (JR, St. Paul, Minn./Central HS) came in to pinch run. Following an Auggie strikeout, Weiss delivered a single that put the game-winner in scoring position on second base. Stoik played the hero for the Auggies for the second time at home this season, smacking a single to left field that brought Nayman home to give the Auggies the 6-5 walk-off win.
• Vinny Rupp (FY, Salt Lake City, Utah/Skyline HS) gave Augsburg another qualify start, allowing seven hits and three runs with six strikeouts in six innings. Jacob Henry (FY, Stacy, Minn./Forest Lake HS), Kell Piggott (FY, Superior, Wis./Superior HS), and Manny Weiss each pitched a single inning of relief with Henry holding the Cardinals scoreless and hitless with a strikeout, Piggott allowing three hits and a run with two strikeouts, and Weiss giving up one hit and one run.
• Weiss was the only Auggie to finish with more than two hits, going 3-for-5 at the plate. Tomony, Salz, and Marshall all had two-hit games with Tomony going a perfect 2-2 with two RBI and Salz and Marshall each going 2-for-4. Marshall was vital for the Augsburg offense with three runs batted in during game two.
 
FOR THE FOES
• Designated hitter Daniel Marxen was a combined 4-for-9 at the plate between both games with three hits in game two.

UP NEXT
• The Auggies will hit the road for a pair of road doubleheaders at Bethel on Saturday (4/29) and at St. Scholastica on Sunday (4/30).