The Johnnies continue their homestand with a 1 p.m. doubleheader against Hamline this Saturday, May 1, at Becker Park. The two teams conclude the three-game series with a nine-inning game at 1 p.m. Sunday, May 2, at CHS Field in St. Paul. – Live Stats/Live Video (Saturday) | Live Video/Live Stats (Sunday)

SJU's SPECTATOR POLICY: Spectators are limited to SJU baseball parents first, then CSB/SJU students and staff (with a CSB/SJU ID), then CSB/SJU alumni on a first-come, first-served basis for the remaining seats available. 

-No fans from the opposing team will be allowed until the MIAC Tournament held May 20-22. 

-Spectators allowed in Becker Park may sit in groups of 4. Available seating areas will be labeled.

-The area above the dugouts in Becker Park are reserved for the student-athletes (for additional social distance seating).

-No tailgating or gatherings in the parking lot or around the stadium will be allowed before, during or after the game/s.

A LOOK AT THE JOHNNIES: Saint John's (22-8, 12-7 MIAC) extended its win streak to 10 games with a doubleheader sweep of Macalester, 8-7 and 5-4, on Wednesday (April 28) in Collegeville.

There were six lead changes in game one, with the sixth serving as a walk-off single by sophomore second baseman Owen Dauk (Apple Valley, Minn./Eastview) in the bottom of the seventh, and the Johnnies led throughout the nightcap for the narrow 5-4 victory.

Game 1 (at Saint John's 8, Macalester 7)
Each time SJU crossed the plate in game one, Macalester answered in the next half-inning. That is, until the bottom of the seventh.

The Johnnies gained a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the third inning on a ground-rule, RBI double from sophomore designated hitter Max Nyrop (Alameda, Calif.) and a balk. The Scots answered with three runs, one earned, in the top of the fourth and SJU re-tied the game at 3-3 with a two-out, RBI single from freshman outfielder Jack Schleper (Shakopee, Minn.) in the bottom of the fifth.

Mac scored a run in the top of the sixth, but SJU responded with three two-out runs in the bottom half for a 6-4 lead. Two runs came across on wild pitches during sophomore third baseman Zach Selchow's (Apple Valley, Minn./Eastview) at-bat and junior catcher Ethan Roe (Golden Valley, Minn./Blake) brought in the other with an RBI single to left.

The Scots, however, tallied three runs off sophomore Alex Otto (Monticello, Minn.) in the top of the seventh.

Soren Roe started the bottom of the seventh with a single, stole second and moved to third on a wild pitch. Pinch-hitter Pete Schroeder (Minneapolis, Minn./Providence Academy) walked and sophomore shortstop Matt Hayford (Rochester, Minn./Lourdes) scored Roe with an RBI single to tie the game. Freshman outfielder Rodney Erickson (St. Paul, Minn./Woodbury) reached on a fielder's choice – the third baseman fielded the groundball and attempted to get Schroeder leaning off third – to load the bases. With the outfield in, Dauk blasted a deep single over the right-fielder's head for the walk-off win.

Senior Nick Penick (Cold Spring, Minn./Rocori) allowed four runs (two earned) on seven hits in the no-decision. He struck out seven in six innings of work. Otto picked up the win to improve to 5-0 this season.

Game 2 (at Saint John's 5, Macalester 4)
SJU replicated game one with two runs in the bottom of the third inning, thanks to a two-out, two-run triple by Dauk. Soren Roe increased the lead to 3-0 with a two-out, RBI double off the right-field fence in the bottom of the fourth.

The visitors cut their deficit to 3-2 with a pair of runs in the top of the sixth, but SJU answered with two runs of its own (one earned) in the bottom half. Mac added two more in the top of the eighth.

Sophomore southpaw Casey Trapp (Blaine, Minn./Centennial) moved his record to 2-4 with the win, allowing two runs on three hits in six innings. He struck out four and walked two.

Sophomore Matt Herold (North Oaks, Minn./Mounds View) gave up two runs in two innings of relief and sophomore Hunter Ault (North Oaks, Minn./Mounds View) pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his first collegiate save.

Dauk and Nyrop both went 3-for-6 with two walks on the day, while Schleper and Ethan Roe joined them in the three-hit club. 

HIT STREAKS: Nyrop is batting .395 (15-for-38) with 18 RBI, nine runs scored and nine extra-base hits (five doubles, one triple and three home runs) during a current 10-game hit streak. He leads the MIAC with 35 RBI this season. Soren Roe, meanwhile, is raking at .517 (15-for-29) with 11 RBI, 13 runs scored and seven extra-base knocks (five doubles and two home runs) in his current nine-game hit streak. Soren has scored a run or more in each of the last 11 games.

DAUK AT-BATS: Dauk batted .500 (3-for-6) with two runs scored and three RBI in Wednesday's doubleheader sweep of Macalester. He started the day with back-to-back strikeouts but proceeded to reach base safely in his next six at-bats. Dauk was hit by a pitch in his third at-bat of the afternoon, and followed it with a walk and the game-winning, walk-off single. He started game two with a single, drove in two with a triple and walked. Dauk flew out to right in his final at-bat of the day.

STAT COMPARISONS: The Johnnies hold a statistical advantage over the Pipers in five of the six major categories.

Batting Average
-SJU, .296
-HU, .257

Slugging Percentage
-SJU, .477
-HU, .359

On-Base Percentage
-SJU, .380
-HU, .361

ERA
-SJU, 3.17
-HU, 5.86

Opponent Batting Average
-SJU, .240
-HU, .314

Fielding Percentage
-HU, .964
-SJU, .955

A LOOK AT THE PIPERS: Hamline (10-16, 5-8 MIAC) suffered a pair of home losses to Saint Mary's, 9-4 and 8-1, yesterday (April 29) at CHS Field. The Pipers collected nine hits and left 10 men on base on game one, and mustered only three singles off the Cardinals' Luke Gilbertson (in nine innings) in game two. Junior Cullen Buck leads the team in batting (.350), runs (23), hits (35) and stolen bases (9). Freshman Mac Enlow is close behind at .300, and leads the Pipers in home runs (4) and RBI (19). Sophomore Zach Branson leads the pitching staff in innings (50.2) and strikeouts (41). He is 3-4 with a 3.73), and took the loss in game two yesterday, allowing eight runs (five earned) on 13 hits in 8.2 innings.

BACK IN 2019: SJU earned the No. 2 seed in the MIAC Tournament with a doubleheader split against Hamline the last time these two teams met on May 4, 2019, in Collegeville. 

SJU entered the seventh inning of game one with a 7-5 lead and lost 8-7 in eight innings, but bounced back with a 4-3 victory in game two for the split. The Johnnies batted .368 (21-for-57) on the afternoon, but recorded five hard-hit double plays. The Pipers batted only .228 (13-for-57) on the day, including .163 (8-for-49) after the doubleheader's first inning, but took advantage of nine walks and five hit batsmen. Five of HU's 11 runs scored reached base thanks to a free pass.

Max Jackson '19 led SJU at the plate with a 4-for-6 performance on the day. His third-inning single in game two enabled him to become the 17th baseball student-athlete in the MIAC to reach 200 career hits.

Joey Stock '20 extended his hit streak to 12 games with a pair of hits. He tied the SJU single-season record with his 11th home run, a solo shot, which started the Johnnies' five-run sixth inning in game one. Stock concluded league play with a .417 batting average (25-for-60), nine home runs and 26 RBI in 18 MIAC games.

Game 1 (Hamline 8, at Saint John's 7; 8 inn.)
The Pipers jumped on Bennett Wiggins '19 for four runs on five hits, including four doubles, in the first inning of game one. HU entered the doubleheader with a league-low 14 extra-base hits in 529 MIAC at-bats.

The visitors made it 5-0 with another run in the third inning before SJU responded with a pair in the bottom half. The Johnnies loaded the bases with three straight one-out singles, erased the shutout on a bases-loaded walk by Stock and plated the other on a wild pitch. 

Stock took advantage of a dropped foul ball and crushed the at-bat's 11th pitch over the left-center fence to start the bottom of the sixth inning. Aaron Kloeppner '20 doubled in Jack Wingerd '19, who reached via walk, and scored to tie the game at 5-5 on Ethan Roe's RBI single. Jackson gave SJU the lead with a two-out, two-run double to end the scoring.

The Pipers tied the game with a pair of unearned runs in the top of the seventh inning, one on a bases-loaded walk and another on a fielder's choice, and scored what proved to be the game-winning run on another fielder's choice in the top of the eighth. Both fielder's choices could have been inning-ending double plays had they not been weak groundballs.

Tommy Auger '19 took the loss, allowing one run on one hit in 1.2 innings. Wiggins surrendered five runs on six hits, with five strikeouts, in six innings for the no-decision. He collected four three-up-three-down innings.

Game 2 (at Saint John's 4, Hamline 3)
SJU jumped to a 2-0 lead in game two thanks to RBI singles from Kloeppner and Jack Schramel '20. HU posted a 3-2 lead with three cheap runs, one on a bases-loaded balk in the second inning and two on a wild pitch and coinciding error.

Wingerd tied the game at 3-3 with an RBI double in the bottom of the third and Kloeppner came through with another two-out, RBI single to make it 4-3.

Junior Nathan Brandecker (South St. Paul, Minn.) earned the win thanks to four scoreless innings of relief. Stock allowed the three runs (two earned) on only two hits in three innings. He struck out five, but issued four walks, hit three batters and was called for two balks.

SERIES HISTORY: SJU is 39-16 against the Pipers since the 1993 season, including a 20-6 record in Collegeville. The Johnnies have won 11 of the last 13 meetings overall.