SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - The Augustana baseball team will be playing for another NSIC Tournament Championship. The Vikings won a 15-14 marathon over No. 4 and top-seeded Minnesota State on Friday afternoon at The Birdcage, securing their spot in the championship game for the sixth time in seven seasons.
AU (39-14) will have to let Friday play out before finding out its opponent. Sioux Falls and St. Cloud State will play in an elimination game before the winner takes on the Mavericks in the nightcap. Augustana will have to be beaten twice on Saturday afternoon to prevent them from an NSIC Tournament crown.
After an NSIC Tournament-record 25 runs on Thursday, The Vikings scattered 16 hits for 15 runs on Friday. Every player to step in the box reached base at least once, led by three hits and four RBI from
Trevor Winterstein and
Ragan Pinnow.
Sam Siegel drove in four runs and scored four times while collecting a pair of hits, none bigger than a game-tying RBI double in the ninth inning.
Joshua Koskie went 2 for 2 and scored twice after entering as a pinch hitter and
Troy Berg added two hits.
Ryan Clementi earned the start, giving up four runs in an inning and a third.
Joel Van De Stroet evened the tide, giving up two earned runs, three total, in 2 2/3 innings.
Jack Sutton got a pair of ours while facing three batters and
Harry Blum allowed four runs without an out.
Kai Taylor (4-2) settled in after a shaky start, giving up three runs and striking out four while facing the final eight batters he faced in four innings to earn the win.
MSU flexed its muscles in the early stages, taking a 6-1 lead into the fourth inning. Augustana cut that deficit to four when a Pinnow groundout allowed Berg to score and make it 6-2.
Trailing 7-2 in the sixth, the Augustana bats came alive. Siegel was hit by a pitch before an error allowed him to get to third while Pinnow reached first. Siegel came home on a
Jake Lundquist fielder's choice that allowed him to reach but saw Pinnow get out at second.
Lunquist reached second on a balk and scored on a Winterstein single to bring the Vikings within three. Two pitches later,
Carter Heinsch lifted a two-run blast to right to cut the deficit to one.
After a pitching change,
Jack Hines singled and stole second before an Axelberg walk and Koskie hit by pitch loaded the bases. Siegel, who has delivered all week, gave the Vikings their first lead of the game on a three-run double to left center and scored on a Pinnow single to put the Vikings in front 10-7.
The Mavericks countered in the bottom of the sixth with six runs and added one more in the seventh to take a 14-10 lead.
A leadoff triple from Koskie in the eighth inning put the offense back in business. Siegel walked to get runners on the corners and Pinnow lifted a sac fly to bring Koskie home. A groundout moved Siegel to second and a Lundquist walk put the pair on with two outs.
Enter Winterstein, who took a pair of balls before lining a double down the right field line, scoring both Siegel and Lundquist to bring the Vikings within 14-13. Taylor planed his flag in the bottom of the eighth with a perfect inning, capped with a strikeout to keep AU within reach.
With two outs remaining, Koskie fired a grounder through the right side for a single. Siegel added another clutch hit to his tournament resume, knocking a double to the right center gap and advanced to third on an error to even the score.
On the very next pitch, Pinnow laced a line drive off the left field wall to drive Siegel home and give the Vikings a 15-14 lead. In the bottom of the ninth, Taylor did what he has done all season, dominating hitters in a 1-2-3 frame to send AU to the NSIC Championship game.
