Mustangs Earn First NAIA Tournament Win; Split Monday Slate

LINCOLN, Neb. - The Mount Mercy baseball team earned their first NAIA Tournament win, taking down St. Francis (Ill.) on Monday afternoon by a score of 8-7, before falling to nationally top-ranked and top-seeded Southeastern (Fla.) by a score of 10-2.

Game One

The Mustangs were paced on offense with two hits from Tyler Dahm and Jeremy Figueroa, while Drake Frazier recorded a game-high three hits and Joel Vaske recorded a game-high three RBI's.

The Mustangs got on the board first, as Ryan Knowlton was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded in the top of the first inning. The Fighting Saints would answer in the top of the second, as Drew Dant recorded the first of his three home runs in the game, tying the game at one. The game wouldn't stay tied for long, as Joel Vaske blasted a three-run shot to right center, as the Mustangs took a three run lead.

Following a St. Francis run in the top of the fifth, Frazier recorded a three-run shot of his own in the bottom half, scoring Kyle Moeder and Kyle Lehmann, as Mount Mercy took a five-run lead after five innings of play.

Over the course of the next three innings, St. Francis would erase the five-run defecit to tie the game, as Dant would record another two home runs to lead the Fighting Saints offense. In the bottom of the eighth, Jeremy Figueroa singled which drove in Frazier, the eventual game winning run.

Zach Barden earned the win, pitching just 0.1 innings. Nathan Pardini earned his first save of the year, pitching the ninth inning while striking out one.

Game Two

The Fire of Southeastern proved why they are the top-ranked team in the NAIA, taking down the Mustangs by a score of 10-2 in the nightcap. The Fire started red-hot on offense, scoring four runs in the top of the first inning, with the big blow coming on an Isaac Nunez three-run shot. Tyler Dahm was able to double to left center, scoring Tyler Pecson as the Mustangs got on the board in the top of the third.

Following six unanswered from Southeastern, Frazier recorded a sacrifice fly which scored Ryan Knowlton as the Mustangs fell by eight. Ramsey David earned the win for Southeastern, improving his record to 6-1, throwing seven innings and striking out eight. Kyle Lehmann was tabbed with the loss, tossing 4.1 innings and striking out one.

The Mustangs next game is Tuesday night at 6 p.m. in Lincoln, with the opponent to be determined, but will be between the winner of Doane and St. Francis in an elimination game.