Augustana University Athletics

SIOUX FALLS, S.D. - Death, taxes, and Augustana baseball in the NSIC title game.

For the seventh time in eight seasons, the Augustana baseball team will play on championship day following a 10-9 thriller over Minnesota State on Friday afternoon at Sioux Falls Stadium. They will play either Winona State, UMary or Minnesota State and will find out their opponent late on Friday night. 

Records
Augustana 40-13
Minnesota State 39-13

Bjorn Lind hit a one-out, three-run blast in the bottom of the eighth inning to lift the Vikings to the championship game. He finished 1 for 2 with five RBI as he tied a single-game program record with two sac flies. 

Kobe Eikmeier added another big game offensively, going 3 for 4 with a pair of doubles and a triple. Nate Soelter added two hits and scored twice and Troy Berg had a home run, two RBI and two runs scored. 

Ethan Hoffman went 5 1/3 innings, allowing four runs on six hits and two walks while striking out six. Josiah Petersen also allowed four runs in 2 1/3 innings. Entering in the eighth, Will Henry recorded a strikeout against the only batter he faced to keep the Vikings within a run and move to 5-2 on the season. Adam Diedrich finished the game allowing a run in the ninth while earning his sixth save of the season. 

Hoffman was efficient in his opening inning, sending MSU down in order and tallying a strikeout to bring up the bats. With one out, Soelter doubled and stole third before a Carter Heinsch fielder's choice brought him in and opened the scoring. 

Heinsch would steal second and Ragan Pinnow wore a pitch to put the two on and force the Mavericks to go to the bullpen. Berg welcomed the fresh arm with a walk and, with the bases loaded, Eikmeier doubled down the left field line to bring in a pair. After a Jake Lundquist walk, Lind lifted a sac fly, scoring Berg and giving AU a 4-0 lead. 

The Mavericks fired back in the second with three RBI doubles to get within a run and would tie it up in the fourth. Soelter opened the bottom of the fifth inning with a single and, with two outs, Berg sent a blast to left field to reclaim the lead at 6-4. Lind added a sac fly in the sixth to give the Vikings a three-run lead. 

That lead would get erased after a three-run seventh and one-run eighth to give the Mavericks an 8-7 lead. MSU also left the bases loaded in that eighth inning as Henry picked up a swinging strikeout to end the frame. 

In the bottom of the eighth, Eikmeier slugged a one-out double and moved to third on a passed ball. After a Lundquist walk, Lind sent a 2-0 pitch over the wall in center field to reclaim the lead. The Mavericks would threaten in the ninth, getting a pair in scoring position with one out, but a sac fly and pop out would finish off the one-run victory.