FARGO, N.D. - Entering the day right behind North Dakota State at third place in the Summit League, the Mavericks swept the doubleheader from the Bison to pass them in the standings after holding on to win 7-6 in game one and 6-3 in game two.
Omaha, once again the winningest team in the league in conference play, is now 12-8 vs. Summit League opponents and 14-24 overall. As for NDSU, they drop to 9-8 in league play and 13-24 on the season.
Game 1
As has been par for the course lately, the Mavericks got off to another hot start, plating three in the top of the first after a double down the line from
Noah Greise and a throwing error by the shortstop to allow two to score on a grounder from
Cardel Dick.
The Bison managed to tie it up at 3-3 over the next two innings, only for another Omaha three spot to give the team the lead for good. With two outs,
Trent Burkhalter sent the first pitch he saw into left field for an RBI single, followed by a two-run double from
Zach Lechnir. Both teams would tack on another run in the fourth.
With a 7-4 lead in hand, the Mavericks gave the ball to
Joe Hackmann in the sixth to finish things off after five innings from starter
Charlie Bell. For three innings, Hackmann absolutely dominated, striking out five and allowing just one hit. In the bottom of the ninth, Things almost completely unraveled as three walks and a hit by pitch allowed two runs to score and make it a one-run ballgame. Fortunately,
Luke Gainer was able hold off NDSU and end the game with the bases loaded to secure the victory for Omaha.
Game 2
Omaha again took an early lead thanks to a two-run homer from
Drew Lechnir in the top of the first. While NDSU was able to tie the game an inning later with a little two-out rally, another two-run home run, this one courtesy of
Jackson Trout, put the Mavericks back on top for good in the third.
The Bison would pull within one on an RBI double from Davis Hamilton in the fourth, but that would be as close as they would get for the rest of the game. In the sixth and eighth,
Matt Goetzmann came through with some clutch hitting, notching a two-out, two-strike RBI single in both innings to grow the lead to 6-3.
Leading by three in the bottom of the ninth, Omaha brought in
Tyler Mattingley for just his second appearance of the season to close it out. After a leadoff single, Mattingley was lights out, inducing a pop up to second before striking out back-to-back batters to end the game and earn his first career save.
Inside the Box Score
With his fourth save of the season, Gainer now has six in his career. This ties him with Brandon Kelley (2005) for the ninth most saves in program history.
After starting the season off 0-5, Bell has now won back-to-back games.
Zach Lechnir's double in game one extended his streak to five straight games with a double. Likewise, Goetzmann hit safely in both games, giving him a 10-game hitting streak now.
On Deck
The Mavericks will look to complete the sweep when they close things out in Fargo at 1 p.m. tomorrow.
