ST. CLOUD, Minn. - No. 2 Augustana (37-21) avoided elimination Thursday night against No. 5 Minot State by earning an 8-3 win in their second game of the afternoon. The Vikings will play Minnesota Duluth at 3:30 p.m. Friday in another elimination game.

Playing just 45 minutes after their game against St. Cloud, the Vikings fell behind to Minot State early in the game. The Beavers scored two runs in the first inning on two hits to grab the early lead.

It didn't take long for the Vikings to get into a rhythm and take the lead. In the bottom half of the inning the Vikings got a single from Patrick O'Donnell with one out. He later scored on a Kris Ashland single to make it 2-1 Beavers. One batter later the Vikings tied it on a Ford Schroeder single that brought in Sam Baier. The Vikings then took the lead when a passed ball allowed Schroeder to score.

The Vikings added to their lead in the second inning when Ryan Menssen drilled a pitch down the left field line to make it 4-2 Vikings.

In the third inning Minot State scored their third run of the game but the Vikings answered in the bottom half of the inning when Lucas Barry doubled, driving in Schroeder and making it 5-3.

The Vikings added three runs in the sixth and took grab an 8-3 lead. The Vikings held the Beavers in check the rest of the way and holding on for an 8-3 win and advancing in the NSIC Tournament.

Tyler Vaughn got the start of the Vikings going nine strong innings for the complete game. Vaughn allowed three runs but only two were earned on the night. He struck out eight batters ad gave up just seven hits.

Pitchers of Record
Win - Tyler Vaughn (6-1): 8 IP, 3 runs, 2 earned runs, 7 hits, 8 strikeouts, 4 walks
Loss - Kendal Daniels (3-6): 3.2 IP, 5 runs, 4 earned runs, 11 hits, 2 strikeouts, 1 walk

Viking Notables
• The Vikings and Beavers met for the first time this season
• Augustana had five extra-base hits
• Ben Moran pitched one inning of relief allowing just one hit
• Barry hit his 19th double of the season
• Menssen hit his third home run of the season
• The Vikings combined for 15 hits
• Augustana left 6 runners on base

Up Next
No. 2 Augustana will play No. 6 Minnesota Duluth at 3:30 p.m. on Friday in an elimination game. The winner of that game will play again Friday night against the loser of Minnesota State and St. Cloud State. The second game of the day will start 45 minutes after the conclusion of the first game.