Game 1 Box Score | Game 2 Box Score

ST. PETER, Minn. - Saint John's baseball vaulted into second place in the MIAC standings with a high-scoring, doubleheader sweep of Gustavus Adolphus on Sunday, May 1, in St. Peter.

SJU (21-15, 13-5 MIAC) won the opener, 13-4, and jumped out to a 14-1 lead in game two en route to a 23-11 victory in seven innings (10-run rule).

The Johnnies batted .465 (20-for-43) with runners in scoring position and out-hit the Gusties (22-9, 9-5 MIAC) 32-19, including 10 extra-base hits: five doubles, two triples and three home runs. In the field, SJU turned five double plays on the day, including four in game two.

GAC entered the doubleheader fourth in the first NCAA Region 9 rankings and committed 11 errors on the afternoon (eight in game two).

Senior right fielder Soren Roe (Golden Valley, Minn./Blake) batted 6-for-9 with two doubles and eight RBI on the day. He now has 21 RBI over his last five games.

Junior second baseman Owen Dauk (Apple Valley, Minn./Eastview) went 5-for-9 with five runs scored to extend his on-base streak to 24 games. He was hit twice to break his tie with Scott Demorett '97 for SJU's hit-by-pitch record with 33 in his career.

Junior first baseman Max Nyrop (Alameda, Calif.) batted 4-for-8 with six runs scored and seven RBI, thanks to a grand slam in game two, to extend his hit streak to 15 games (on-base streak to 19 games).

Game 1
SJU loaded the bases with one out in the first inning thanks to three consecutive free passes - two hit batsmen and a four-pitch walk - and gained a 1-0 lead on an RBI groundout from senior catcher Ethan Roe (Golden Valley, Minn./Blake).

The Johnnies score four runs on five hits in the top of the second inning. Soren Roe smoked a leadoff double to the right-center gap, moved to third on a groundout off the bat of sophomore designated hitter Jack Schleper (Shakopee, Minn.) and scored on an infield single from junior shortstop Matthew Hayford (Rochester, Minn./Lourdes). Dauk kept the inning alive with a two-out single and Nyrop made it 3-0 with an RBI single in the next at-bat. Sophomore center fielder Jordan Amundson (Eden Prairie, Minn.) reached on an error to load the bases and Ethan Roe ripped a two-run single up the middle for a 5-0 cushion. 

Nyrop reached via error and Amundson walked to start the fourth before Soren Roe roped a two-out, two run single up the middle for a 7-0 lead.

The Gusties scored two runs, one earned, in the bottom of the fourth and added two more in the fifth to cut their deficit to 7-4.

Nyrop singled to start the sixth inning and moved to second on a one-out wild pitch, but did not score on Ethan Roe's double. He was thrown out at the plate on Erickson's groundball to third. Soren Roe came through once again with a two-out, two-run double to the left-center gap to give SJU a 9-4 lead.

The Johnnies ended the scoring with four more runs, three of which came on Amundson's seventh home run of the season, in the top of the seventh.

Sophomore Kody Dalen (Carver, Minn./Chanhassen) allowed four runs (three earned) on seven hits in five innings for the win (2-1 record). He struck out five and issued four free passes (two walks and two hit batsmen).

Senior Nathan Brandecker (South St. Paul, Minn.) allowed one hit in two innings of scoreless relief.

Game 2
The two teams scored a run or more in each of the first six half-innings in game two, including nine for SJU in the first. Sophomore third baseman Joe Becker (New Prague, Minn.) reached on an error to start the game, Dauk singled and Nyrop walked to load the bases. Amundson followed with a two-run single to the opposite field and Ethan Roe was plunked by a pitch to re-load the basepaths. GAC committed its second error of the inning in the next at-bat as Erickson brought in another run on a groundball to the shortstop. Soren Roe made it 4-0 with a fielder's choice for the first out of the inning and Schleper continued the scoring parade with an RBI single in the ensuing at-bat. Hayford gave SJU a 6-0 lead with an RBI double to force a pitching change. Another error re-loaded the bases before Dauk drove in the seventh run with his second single of the inning and Nyrop roped a two-run double down the left-field line.

An SJU error and two walks loaded the bases for GAC in the bottom of the first and the home team scored its first run on a double play.

The Johnnies scored five more, thanks to three hits and two more GAC errors, in the top of the second inning. Becker drove in the first run with his third triple of the season and Amundson crushed his second, three-run homer of the day.

Like the first inning, GAC loaded the bases in the second with a single and two walks. A wild pitch gave the Gusties their second run and a sacrifice fly made it 14-3.

Erickson lined a single to left to start the third inning and made it to third when the ball skipped past the left fielder. He scored on a sac fly from Soren Roe in the next at-bat for a 15-3 lead.

Gustavus went single-walk-single-double to start the bottom half of the third inning and plated two more runs, ending sophomore Griffin Larson's (Edina, Minn.) day in favor of sophomore Isaac Harrill (Eden Prairie, Minn.). A one-out double and throwing error added two more runs to the Gusties' ledger, cutting SJU's lead to 15-7.

The home team closed the gap again in the fourth inning, 15-10, with a two-run double and an SJU fielding error that should have ended the inning.

The Johnnies responded with a two-out, two-run single from Becker in the top of the fifth and a single run in the sixth to gain an 18-10 lead. Amundson tripled for the third time this season to start the sixth and scored on a two-out single from Soren Roe. 

An infield single gave GAC a single run in the bottom of the sixth before SJU put up another crooked number in the top of the seventh. Nyrop hit an opposite-field grand slam, the second of his career and the team's third of the season. The homer, Nyrop's 18th of his career, enabled him to break his tie with Brent Schloe '00 and former teammate Joey Stock '20 for sole possession of fourth in program history. 

Harrill earned his first collegiate win (1-1 record) in relief, allowing three runs (two earned) in two innings. The Gusties scored one run off junior Jack Haring (Ham Lake, Minn./Blaine) in the final three innings. He struck out three and walked three.

Larson was tagged for seven runs (six earned) on four hits in two innings. He walked five and hit one.

Amundson matched Dauk's 5-for-9 performance on the day and combined with Nyrop for 12 runs scored and 15 RBI. Six Johnnies crossed the plate four times or more in the doubleheader: Amundson (6), Nyrop (6), Becker (5), Dauk (5), Erickson (4) and Hayford (4).

The Johnnies return home to host Augsburg for the regular-season finale and Senior Day at 1 p.m. Saturday, May 7, in Collegeville.