University of Minnesota Athletics
University of Minnesota
1-3
Gonzaga
1-3
Gophers Settle for Split with Gonzaga on Getaway Day
2/18/2019 2:40:00 PM | Baseball
A pair of Bulldog errors helped Minnesota (1-3) jump out to an early lead, scoring two runs in the first without the benefit of a hit thanks in large part to a double steal from Jordan Kozicky and Max Meyer, allowing them to score on a throwing error that came off the bat of Cole McDevitt.
Gonzaga (1-3) took the lead in the third, with four-straight batters reaching base to start the inning. On a nearly perfect bunt attempt by Josh Bristyan, rookie Zack Raabe scooped the ball with his glove to feed it to McDevitt for the first out, and the Gophers caught a runner trying to go from second-to-third on a sacrifice fly to limit the damage in the inning.
Jake Stevenson (0-1) worked the first 3+ innings for Minnesota, allowing four earned on four hits, collecting one strikeout on the day. Joshua Culliver, who had a successful relief outing against Gonzaga on Friday night, entered with a runner on in the third. An error on the Gopher infield helped bring home a pair of unearned runs against Culliver, who closed out the inning with a strikeout as the Bulldogs pushed the lead to 6-2.
Southpaw Justin Blatner (1-0) had the Maroon & Gold off balance all day, collecting 11 strikeouts in 6.0 innings of work for Gonzaga. He did not allow an earned run and held the Gophers to just one hit. Minnesota scored two runs in the seventh thanks to a double by Eli Wilson and a triple by Easton Bertrand, and back-to-back singles from Wilson and McDevitt put the tying run on base in the ninth. Mezzenga singled home the fifth run, but the Gophers' rally ended there with Gonzaga matching up three different pitchers in the ninth inning.
NOTABLE
Freshman Zack Raabe lined a single to right for his first career hit in the second inning … McDevitt extended his team-leading six-game hitting streak.
UP NEXT
Minnesota heads back on the road next weekend as the team begins a three-game series with Dallas Baptist University (3-0) on Friday night. First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m.
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Team Stats
Pitching:
W: BLATNER, Justin (1-0)
L: Stevenson, Jake (0-1)
S: SCHULTE, Trent (1)
Batting:
2B: JOHNSTON, Troy 1 ; HARRIS, Brett 1
RBI: YAKE, Ernie 3 ; PINORINI, Austin 1 ; JOHNSTON, Troy 1 ; HARRIS, Brett 1
SH: BRISTYAN, Josh 1 ; MORRISON, Guthrie 1
SF: PINORINI, Austin 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Sullivan, Ryan 1 ; BARRERA, Isaac 2 ; HARRIS, Brett 2 ; BRESHEARS, Carson 1
SB: BARRERA, Isaac 1
HBP: Sullivan, Ryan 1 ; HARRIS, Brett 1
Batting:
2B: Wilson, Eli 1
3B: Bertrand, Easton 1
RBI: Bertrand, Easton 1 ; Raabe, Zack 1 ; Mezzenga, Ben 1
SH: Bertrand, Easton 1
SF: Raabe, Zack 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Meyer, Max 1 ; Kozicky, Jordan 1 ; Wilson, Eli 1 ; McDevitt, Cole 1 ; Bertrand, Easton 1
SB: Meyer, Max 1 ; Kozicky, Jordan 1
PO: Wilhite, Andrew 1
