Piper baseball takes two from #13 Tommies

The Pipers broke open a close game in the nightcap to win 4-0 and complete a rare sweep to knock the Tommies out of first place in the MIAC standings. Hamline ended St. Thomas' 13-game conference win streak and an 11-game home field win streak.

The wins marked the first time that the Tommies were swept in an MIAC baseball doubleheader in six seasons, covering 62 doubleheaders. It was the first time St. Thomas was swept at home in 10 years to the day -- April 22, 1998 vs. St. John's. St. Thomas had played 100 consecutive MIAC doubleheaders in baseball and softball without being swept.

Senior lefthander Josh Roiger (West St. Paul, Minn.) pitched the final inning for the save in game one and threw a four-hit shutout in game two.

Roiger is 4-1 on the mound against the Tommies over the last three seasons. He struck out four and didn't walk a batter despite going to a full count at least six times. He was backed by two double-play grounders and a diving catch by first baseman Tres Humerickhouse (Fy., Farmington, Minn.) that robbed Matt Pexa of the Tommies of a hit.

The Tommies took a 3-1 lead on a third-inning home run. St. Thomas held a 5-2 lead into the final inning, but two hits and a walk brought the go-ahead run to the plate with one out. After a strikeout, Bennett stepped in and hit his seventh homer of the season.

Game two was scoreless through five innings, before a one-out single by James McGee (Jr., Fridley, Minn.) and Dan Kaczrowski's (Jr., St. Anthony, Minn.) RBI triple put Hamline ahead 1-0.

Kaczrowski later scored an unearned run when a pickoff was botched with two outs for a 2-0 lead. Hamline added two runs off two St. Thomas relievers in the last inning, as McGee drove in the final run with a double.

The Pipers are now 18-11, 7-3 MIAC following the two wins, while the Tommies fall to 21-7, 10-2 MIAC. 

Hamline hosts Augsburg tomorrow, Wednesday, April 23, at 2:30 p.m. at Midway Stadium.