WINTER HAVEN, Fla. – St. Cloud State Baseball (8-9, 5-1 NSIC) fell to Wayne State (MI) (12-2, 0-0 GLIAC,) 6-5, in a wild, 15-inning affair that goes down as one of the longest games in program history. The Huskies erased three different leads, tying the game in the first, sixth, and ninth innings, before their rally in the bottom of the 15th came up just short.
The Warriors would open the scoring in the top of the first, bringing home a pair of runs including a leadoff home run. The Huskies would answer back immediately, however, in the bottom of the frame. Redshirt junior Hayden Frank (St. Michael, Minn.) walked and redshirt junior Josh McGuin (Toronto, Ontario) singled to put runners on first and second. Both would advance on a sacrifice bunt, and score on a two out single from redshirt senior Liam Moreno (Sun Prairie, Wis.).
Another solo home run would put Wayne State back in front 3-2 in the fifth. This time, it would take the Huskies one inning to respond, as SCSU evened things up in the sixth. After back-to-back singles from senior Wyatt Tweet (Russell, Manitoba) and junior Wilmis Castro (Port St. Lucie, Fla.), a fielder’s choice and a caught stealing left Tweet on third base with two outs. For the second straight game, redshirt senior Eric Bello (Manati, Puerto Rico) picked up an RBI double to bring home Tweet.
The Warriors retook the lead in the top of the seventh after two walks, a single, and an error. Wayne State would hold the lead until the bottom of the ninth, when the Huskies managed to rally back. Moreno opened up the ninth by beating out a ground ball for an infield single. Things looked dark for SCSU when the next two batters flied out, but the Huskies worked back-to-back walks to load the bases. With an 0-2 count on Frank, the Huskies were down to their final strike but the next pitch skipped to the backstop, scoring Moreno and tying the game.
The bullpens settled in and traded zeros in extra innings. The Huskies allowed a couple hits but held Wayne State off the scoreboard thanks to great defensive plays from Moreno and Frank. Freshman Brayden Simones (Sartell, Minn.) pitched four scoreless innings out of the Huskies bullpen.
The Warriors would finally break the deadlock with a two-run homer to right in the top of the 15th inning. Once again, however, the Huskies would push back. SCSU loaded the bases on three straight walks with no one out. After a strikeout, Tweet bounced out to shortstop, scoring freshman Brayden Steinbecker (Manitowoc, Wis.) who entered the game as a pinch runner. Castro walked to reload the bases, leaving it to Moreno who would hit a hard ground ball up the middle where the WSU second basemen made a diving play and flipped it to second to end the game by half a step. If Moreno’s base hit attempt made it through, the Huskies would have scored two and won the game.
TOP HUSKIESNOTES
- The Huskies move to 0-1 all-time against the Warriors.
- It was the first extra inning game of the year for SCSU, and is believed to be the most innings played in a game since May 2, 1993 when the Huskies beat North Dakota State, 6-5, in 15 innings in St. Cloud.
- Huskies pitching struck out 15 batters, their highest total this season. It was also the seventh time this year SCSU pitching has recorded 10+ strikeouts.
- Steinbecker made his NCAA debut and scored his first run in the 15th inning.
- Simones pitched four innings, the longest outing of his collegiate career. His four strikeouts ties for his career high.
- Moreno picked up his team-leading seventh multi-hit game of the season.
UP NEXT
The Huskies return to action tomorrow in their final day at the RussMatt Central Invitational in Florida. SCSU takes on Minnesota Duluth (3-11, 2-4 NSIC) at 10 a.m. EST/9 a.m. CT, and Davenport (MI) (6-10, 0-0 GLIAC) at 1:30 p.m. EST/12:30 p.m. in a doubleheader to close out play in the Sunshine State.
For all the latest on St. Cloud State Baseball, stay tuned to SCSUHuskies.com and follow the team on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
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