Game 1 Box Score | Game 2 Box Score

ARDEN HILLS, Minn. – Saint John's baseball dropped a pair of games, 4-0 and 5-4, at Bethel on Saturday, April 19.

The Johnnies (18-12, 8-4 MIAC) mustered four hits and went down on strikes nine times to Bethel's Max Sutter in game one and surrendered a 4-1 lead in the nightcap.

BU (22-6, 11-1 MIAC) held the Johnnies to a .190 (11-for-58) batting average and recorded 19 strikeouts on the day.

SJU batted 5-for-23 (.217) with runners on base, including 2-for-14 (.143) with runners in scoring position.

Game 1 – at Bethel 4, Saint John's 0
SJU had two runners on base in each of the first two innings before Bethel broke through for a single run with three doubles in the bottom of the second.

Oran Hinkle hit his seventh home run of the season to lead off the bottom of the third and a leadoff walk eventually scored with two outs in the fifth. Back-to-back doubles to start the bottom of the sixth inning plated BU's fourth run.

Sophomore Carter Theisen (Rosemount, Minn.) took the loss (4-2 record) after he allowed all four runs on seven hits – five of which were for extra bases (four doubles and a homer) – with four strikeouts in the seven-inning, complete-game effort.

Game 2 – at Bethel 5, Saint John's 4
Hayden Sperbeck gave the Royals an early 1-0 lead with a solo shot – the lone hit allowed by sophomore starter Hunter Hoen (Belle Plaine, Minn.) in four innings – in the bottom of the first.

Senior third baseman Joe Becker (New Prague, Minn.) and senior first baseman Owen Best (Aurora, Colo./Regis Jesuit) walked to start the fourth inning and trotted home when Brendan Hemr (Blaine, Minn./Centennial) blasted a three-run homer with two outs to give SJU its first lead of the day. The long ball was Hemr's fourth of the season.

Another two-out RBI, this time a single from sophomore left fielder Alex Matchey (Stillwater, Minn./Stillwater Area), made it 4-1 in the top of the fifth inning. BU left the bases loaded in the bottom half of the fifth.

Marquardt and Becker singled to start the seventh inning but they did not budge from second and first, respectively.

The Royals cut their deficit to 4-3 with a pair of runs off senior Will Fazio (Minneapolis, Minn./Blake) in the bottom of the sixth inning. Junior Jack Dobesh (Edina, Minn.) relieved Fazio with one out and runners at second and first, and induced a lineout to Matchey in left. Matchey then doubled up the runner at second base to end the inning.

Freshman Drew Lange (Albany, Minn./Holdingford) took the loss (2-1 record) after he allowed two runs, one earned due to his own throwing error, in the seventh inning.

Junior shortstop Reed Marquardt (Lindstrom, Minn./Chisago Lakes) led SJU's bats with a 3-for-5 performance.

The Johnnies wrap up their road stretch with a 2:30 p.m. doubleheader at Saint Mary's on Wednesday, April 23, in Winona.