FARGO — The North Dakota State baseball team appeared poised to keep its Summit League Championship hopes alive with relative ease in its elimination game against Omaha on Thursday. The Mavericks had other ideas.
The Bison lost a five-run lead in the late innings and had to battle the Mavericks through 12 innings before securing a 7-6 victory at Newman Outdoor Field.
In the top of the 12th, James Dunlap led off the inning with a single and Terrell Huggins reached on a Maverick fielding error. Jack Steil bunted and everybody was safe on the fielder's choice. Stephen Lund drove in the go-ahead run on a sacrifice fly to left field.
In the bottom of the 12th, Bison reliever Parker Puetz got the first two outs, walked Eduardo Rosario but got Drew Reetz to fly out to right to end the game.
Puetz threw three no-hit innings to get the win. He walked one and struck out one.
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The Bison play another elimination game at 4:05 p.m. Friday, May 26, against either Oral Roberts or South Dakota State.
The Bison suffered a disastrous 17-4 loss to South Dakota State in Wednesday's tournament opener, but they wasted no time putting it behind them against the Mavericks.
In the top of the first inning, Cadyn Schwabe led off with a walk and Peter Brookshaw followed with a two-run home run to right field. Dunlap singled with one out, Huggins walked and both moved up on a balk. Dunlap scored on Steil's groundout.
The Bison added another run in the second when Davis Hamilton walked, Carson Hake was hit by a pitch and Schwabe reached on a bunt single to load the bases. Brookshaw grounded into a double play but Hamilton scored on the play.
In the fifth, Brookshaw singled through the right side and Sackett was hit by a pitch. A throwing error on a double steal allowed Brookshaw to score. In the sixth, Hamilton walked with one out and later scored on Brookshaw's sacrifice fly and the Bison led 6-1.
Bison starter Tristen Roehrich exited after six innings. He gave up the one run on six hits, didn't walk anyone and struck out five. But the game started going south for NDSU soon after.
The Mavericks scored a run in the seventh on Devin Hurdle's sacrifice fly, then scored three more in the eighth when Cam Frederick doubled to lead off, Matt Goetzmann walked and Rosario launched a three-run homer to left.
Omaha tied it in the bottom of the ninth. Brennen Bales drew a lead-off walk and pinch runner Garrett Kennedy moved up to second on Eddie Satisky's sacrifice bunt. Frederick followed with an RBI single. Frederick stole second and third with one out but the Bison survived the inning when reliever Skyler Riedinger struck out Goetzmann and Rosario to end the threat.
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In the 10th, Dunlap led off with a single and moved to third on a sacrifice bunt and a failed pickoff attempt. But Mavericks reliever Alex Potter got a strikeout and a flyout to strand Dunlap.
NDSU put two runners on in the 11th with one out but couldn't get a run across.
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