Game 1 Box Score | Game 2 Box Score

COLLEGEVILLE, Minn. – Saint John's baseball ran its win streak to five games and clinched a berth to next week's four-team MIAC Tournament with a sweep of Concordia-Moorhead, 4-1 and 4-3, on Tuesday, April 29, at Haugen Field at Becker Park.

The Johnnies (23-13, 13-5 MIAC) will make their 15th-consecutive appearance and 17th overall in the MIAC Tournament (established in 2003), which will be held May 8-10 in Collegeville. 

SJU batted .313 (15-for-48) with five extra-base hits and held Concordia (18-19, 9-11 MIAC) to a .197 average and 12 singles (12-for-61). The Cobbers were 3-for-22 (.136) with runners in scoring position on the afternoon.

Game 1 – at Saint John's 4, Concordia 1
CC scored an unearned run in the top of the second inning before SJU plated four unanswered runs for the win.

Junior shortstop Reed Marquardt (Lindstrom, Minn./Chisago Lakes) walked to start the bottom of the third inning and senior first baseman Owen Best (Aurora, Colo./Regis Jesuit) followed suit two batters later. A bunt single from sophomore second baseman Alex Matchey (Stillwater, Minn./Stillwater Area) loaded the bases before junior right fielder Brendan Hemr (Blaine, Minn./Centennial) roped a 3-2 pitch up the middle for an RBI single. Sophomore center fielder Riley Schwellenbach (Woodbury, Minn./East Ridge) brought in the go-ahead run with a fielder's choice in the next at-bat.

Senior catcher Blake Mellgren (Northfield, Minn.) drew a leadoff walk in the bottom of the fourth inning and SJU scored another run with three-straight walks – the third being Matchey – before Hemr ended the game's scoring with a sacrifice fly.

Senior Connor Hartley (Inver Grove Heights, Minn./Rosemount) pitched the complete game, his fourth of the season, and allowed the unearned run on just two hits in seven innings. He tied a season high with seven strikeouts and is now 6-4 on the year.



Game 2 – at Saint John's 4, Concordia 3
The Johnnies put together a two-out rally to tally the game's first run in the bottom of the first inning when Best singled through the right side and scored from first when Matchey dropped a triple down the right-field line.

Senior third baseman Joe Becker (New Prague, Minn.) made it 2-0 when he blasted his 13th home run of the season to start the bottom of the third inning. The long ball tied him with former teammate Ethan Roe '22 (set in 2021) for the SJU season record. Becker is also two runs scored from the season record of 45 set by another former teammate, Owen Dauk '23, in 2023 and is tied with Casey Haugen '07 for the program record in walks with 82.

The Cobbers cut the lead to 2-1 with an unearned run in the fifth inning, but the home team manufactured a run in the bottom of the sixth inning. Best started the frame with a double, his 11th of the season, moved to third on a sac bunt from Matchey and scored on another RBI single off the bat of Hemr.

The exchange of runs continued in the seventh inning. CC put together three singles off reliever Kade Bowar (Burnsville, Minn.) to make it 3-2 but the senior ended the threat – with two runners on – with a strikeout looking. Junior left fielder Owen Amrhein (Waconia, Minn.) dropped a Texas-league double down the right-field line, advanced to third on a sac bunt from Mellgren and scored on Marquardt's sac fly.

The visitors tallied an unearned run in the top of the eighth inning and nearly tied the game at 4-4, but Schwellenbach made a sensational diving catch in the left-center gap for the third out.

Senior Will Fazio (Minneapolis, Minn./Blake) improved to 6-1 with the win after he allowed an unearned run on five groundball singles in six innings of work. He struck out nine and walked one.

Junior Jack Dobesh (Edina, Minn.) struck out three and pitched the final two scoreless innings for his second save of the season.

CC went 2-for-17 with runners in scoring position and left 10 men on base in the nightcap.

Matchey led SJU by going 4-for-6 at the plate with two RBI and Best posted a 3-for-6 performance with two walks and three runs scored.

The Johnnies wrap up MIAC play with a 1 p.m. doubleheader at St. Scholastica this Saturday, May 3, at Wade Stadium in Duluth.