ST. GEORGE, KAN. – Sioux Falls (6-15, 2-4 NSIC) split Saturday's doubleheader against Minnesota Crookston (7-10, 4-3 NSIC), falling 6-4 in Game 1 before bouncing back with a 7-3 win in Game 2. The Cougars struck early in the opener but couldn't hold off UMC's middle-inning rally. In the second game, USF broke it open with a six-run sixth inning to secure the win.
How It Happened
Game 1 – Sioux Falls 4, Minnesota Crookston 6
The Cougars got off to a hot start, scoring three runs in the first inning. Nolan Drossel led off with a single, then advanced to third on a passed ball. Dominic Vogel walked, and Ben Serie reached on an error, allowing Drossel to score. Caden Ransom followed with an RBI single, and Isaac Bonner added a bunt single to bring home Mitch Iliff, making it 3-0 USF.
Minnesota Crookston responded in the third with a four-run inning, highlighted by a grand slam from Josh Dykhoff to give UMC a 4-3 lead. The Golden Eagles added another run in the fourth on a groundout by Aaron Wensloff, extending their lead to 5-3.
Sioux Falls clawed back in the fifth as Drossel doubled and later scored on a wild pitch, cutting the deficit to 5-4. However, UMC added an insurance run in the sixth after a passed ball, and USF couldn't push across any more runs in the final two innings.
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Pitching Performance: Brady Baur (0-2) took the loss, allowing five runs over three innings, while Myles Rees threw four shutout innings in relief, allowing just one unearned run on no hits.
Game 2 – Sioux Falls 7, Minnesota Crookston 3
After a quiet start, Sioux Falls broke the game open with a six-run sixth inning to take control.
The Cougars took the lead in the third inning when Ryan Gouldin tripled down the right-field line and scored on a groundout by William Edwards, making it 1-0 USF. The score remained tight until the sixth, when the Cougars' bats exploded.
Noah Christenson started the rally with a walk, followed by a single from Drossel. After a groundout moved both runners into scoring position, Mitch Iliff delivered a clutch two-run double to extend the lead to 3-0. Jackson Yeager followed with a two-run single, and Isaac Bonner capped off the big inning with a two-run homer to right, giving USF a 7-0 lead.
Minnesota Crookston added a run in the seventh and two in the eighth, but USF's pitching held strong, with Ben Serie closing out the ninth inning to seal the victory.
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Pitching Performance: Logan Anderson (2-3) earned the win, tossing six innings, allowing just six hits while striking out nine. Ben Serie closed it out with a perfect ninth inning, striking out two.
Up Next:
The Cougars finish their series with the Golden Eagles tomorrow, March 16th with first pitch at 12:00 p.m. at the Rock Creek High School in St. George, Kansas.
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