SIOUX FALLS – The University of Sioux Falls Baseball Team (15-15, 7-8 NSIC) lost twice to Minnesota-Duluth (11-12, 5-5 NSIC), 7-3, and 11-6 at Ronken Field in Sioux Falls on Tuesday afternoon.

The Cougars fell to 7-8 in the league while UMD is 5-5. The Cougars are scheduled to travel to face Bemidji State on Saturday and Sunday, April 9-10 this weekend. Today's doubleheader was originally scheduled to be held in Duluth, Minn., but due to weather and field conditions moved to Ronken Field in Sioux Falls, S.D.

Game 1 – UMD 7 USF 3
In the opening game, UMD rallied for a combined six runs over the final three innings to earn a 7-3 victory over USF.

While USF took a 3-1 lead early, USF rallied late to earn the win and snap their five-game losing streak.
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The Cougars finished with seven hits, including two hits and two runs scored by Grant Lung. Noah Christenson also had two hits while Trey Hubers and Connor King also had a base hit. Kyle Gulbrandson had a pair of RBI on sacrifice flies.

On the mound, Cole Schumacher (0-3) took the loss as he allowed four runs (two earned) in 3 1/3 innings while giving up six hits and striking out.  Zachary Shastay (1 2/3 innings, two hits) and Derek Lundgren (one inning, two hits, three runs) also pitched for USF.

UMD's Conor Nygard (2-1) picked up the win in relief as he worked 3 1/3 innings and retired all 10 batters he faced. Travor Gustafson led UMD's hitting attack with three hits, including a home run, and four RBI.

Game 2 – UMD 11 USF 6
In game two, the Cougars jumped to an early lead but UMD countered with eight runs across the first three innings and held off a late USF rally as they earned a 10-4 win in game two.

USF had 11 hits including three by Brady Klehr, who also had three RBI. On the day, Klehr hit .571 with four hits including two doubles and three RBI with a .625 OBP.

Also for USF, sophomore Ben Serie had three hits and three RBI to raise his season average to .309 and .340 in conference play. He also had an RBI and run scored. Tyler Cate, who is hitting .336 on the season, had a pair of hits and an RBI and run scored while Noah Buss had a double and run scored.

Jacob Emerson took the loss for USF to fall to 0-1. Emerson allowed five runs on five hits with a walk and a strikeout. Mason Leonard (2 1/3 inn., four hits, four runs, three strikeouts), Grayson Skinner (2 inns., two hits, unearned run, five strikeouts), Connor McGonigal (inning, hit, run, strikeout) and Logan Parker-Sjoberg (inning, walk, strikeout) also worked for USF.

Stats Breakdown – In the doubleheader, USF hit .333 with 22 hits, nine runs scored, three stolen bases, five doubles and eight RBI plus a .378 OBP. The Cougars had a 6.43 earned run average with 13 strikeouts in 14 innings. Brady Klehr led the way with four hits, three RBI and six total bases and a .571 batting average. Noah Christenson hit .429 as did Grant Lung as both had three hits and Ben Serie added three hits and a .375 mark. Kyle Gulbrandson had a pair of hits and two RBI as he hit .333.

Overall this season, USF is hitting .288 with 265 hits, 187 runs, 36 doubles, four triples, 16 home runs, 357 total bases, .388 slugging and .378 OBP with 52 steals in 68 attempts. Noah Christenson leads USF through 30 games with a .398 average and a team-high 43 hits and 25 RBI. He has a .439 OBP. Brady Klehr has pushed his average to .337 with 19 RBI and a .380 OBP while Tyler Cate sits at .336 with a team-best 28 runs. On the mound, USF has a 6.12 earned run average with 204 strikeouts in 225 innings. Alex Krout leads USF with a 2.93 earned run average and five saves while Caleb Ditmarson (3.86 ERA, team-high 40 strikeouts), Derek Lundgren and Andrew Maslowski all have three wins.