PUNTA GORDA, Fla. - The North Dakota State baseball team closed a weekend in Florida with a pair of wins on Sunday, defeating St. Bonaventure 6-5 and 6-1. NDSU scored five runs in the bottom of the ninth in the opener before leading from start to finish in the nightcap.
NDSU improved to 5-7 overall, while St. Bonaventure dropped to 3-2. The Bison will return to action on Tuesday, March 3, as they face Minnesota. First pitch is scheduled for 6 p.m. at U.S. Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.Â
Brock Anderson had two hits in the opener, while
Peter Brookshaw,
Tucker Rohde and
Carson Hake each had one.
Ben Smith had a no-decision on the mound in 7.1 innings of work. Smith allowed three runs on three hits and a walk, while striking out seven.
Jake Drew allowed two runs on two hits, while striking out two in an inning.
Gabe Pilla moved to 1-1 on the year, earning the victory by tossing the final two-thirds inning.
The Bison started the scoring in the bottom of the first, as Rohde drove in Anderson. The Bonnies scored twice in the third to take the lead before adding a home run in the sixth inning. In the top of the ninth, St. Bonaventure hit a two-run home run to take a 5-1 lead. In the bottom of the ninth, Rhode singled up the middle to plate
Bennett Hostetler. With the bases loaded,
Zach Solano walked to bring in Rohde. A sacrifice fly by
Tyler Silva drove in
Carson Hake before
Carter Thompson scored the tying run on a ball put in play by
Calen Schwabe. Brookshaw drove in Schwabe for the winning run with a single down the right field line.
NDSU had nine hits in the nightcap, led by two each from Brookshaw and Solano.
Riley Johnson had a no-decision in the start on the mound, allowing a run on one hit and two walks, while striking out three.
Zach Smith moved to 2-0 on the year in four innings of work out of the bullpen. Smith didn't allow a hit, while walking two and striking out four.
Solano started the scoring in the nightcap with a single to center field that drove in Brookshaw in the top of the first. In the second inning, Silva scored on a sacrifice fly by Brookshaw. St. Bonaventure cut the lead to one with an RBI double in the third inning. In the sixth, Silva reached on a bunt single that brought in Solano. Silva would later score on a wild pitch in the sixth. In the seventh inning, Brookshaw hit his first home run of the season before Hostetler scored on a sacrifice fly by Rohde to close the scoring.
