Thursday, March 23
Elkhorn, Neb.
1 p.m. CT
St. Cloud State
6
vs
3
Southwest Minnesota State
Jack Habeck earned his 20th collegiate victory in Thursday's midweek sweep
Photo by: Ryan Roehl
Strong starts guide SCSU to midweek sweep of Southwest Minnesota State
3/23/2023 9:15:00 PM | Baseball
Habeck and Beier both brilliant as Huskies open NSIC play 2-0
ELKHORN, Neb. – St. Cloud State Baseball (10-7, 2-0 NSIC) received phenomenal starts from juniors Jack Habeck and Drew Beier in a midweek sweep of Southwest Minnesota State (8-7, 0-5 NSIC) on Thursday evening at Frerichs Legion Field in Elkhorn, Nebraska. Habeck guided the Huskies to a 6-3 win in game one before Beier tossed 8.0 innings to earn a 4-1 victory in the nightcap. Opening conference play 2-0, SCSU moves into a tie for first place in the young NSIC standings.
Game One: St. Cloud State 6, Southwest Minnesota State 3
Jack Habeck set the tone for St. Cloud State on the mound in his second start of the season, tossing 6.2 strong innings of three-run ball to earn the game one win. The southpaw struck out four while scattering seven hits and a pair of walks.
After Habeck showed off his moxie by escaping a two on, one out situation in the top of the first, SCSU plated four in the home half to provide early run support. John Nett (2-for-4, R, 2B) laced a single down the right field line, then Sam Riola (1-for-3, 2 R, 2B, RBI) reached on a fielder's choice. Sawyer Smith (0-for-3, R) grounded a ball to second that was mishandled, putting runners on the corners for a brief moment before the Huskies shortstop stole second. Garrett Bevacqua (1-for-3, R, RBI) rifled a seeing-eye single through the left side to plate Riola, then Otto Grimm (0-for-3, R, RBI) brought Smith home on a grounder to first that sputtered away from the Mustang one-bagger. Two batters later, Ethan Navratil (2-for-3, 2B, 2 RBI) blasted a two-run double the opposite way to cap off the four-run frame.
St. Cloud State added two more runs an inning later as Nett and Riola traded places with back-to-back doubles to open the second. Smith advanced Riola to third with a groundout to second, then a wild pitch brought the latter home for a 6-0 lead.
Habeck escaped a bases-loaded, nobody-out start to the third by allowing just one run then proceeded to retire 12 of the next 13 batters he faced. The Huskies captain was finally chased after four straight reached with two down in the seventh, giving way to Grady Fuchs. A three-pitch strikeout earned Fuchs his first collegiate save, closing out the 6-3 win.
Game Two: St. Cloud State 4, Southwest Minnesota State 1
A pitchers duel awaited St. Cloud State in the series finale as Drew Beier squared off with South Dakota State transfer Carter Petron. Beier pounded the zone and relied on a combination of strong defense and excellent command to complete 8.0 innings of one-run ball on just 90 pitches. The righty permitted just three hits and a pair of walks while striking out two and incredibly facing just one off the minimum through seven innings.
After Beier and Petron traded zeroes through one and a half complete, Ben Clapp (1-for-2, 2 BB, R, HR, RBI) cracked a missile of a solo shot to left on the first pitch he saw to lead off the bottom of the second. The lone run appeared to be all Beier would need as the righthander continued to carve up SMSU over the next five innings.
Fresh off the stretch in the bottom of the seventh, Garrett Bevacqua (1-for-3, R, 2B, RBI) extended his hitting streak to seven games with a leadoff double lined down the right field line. Otto Grimm (0-for-2, SH) laid down a sacrifice bunt, then Tate Wallat (1-for-1, R, RBI) poked a run-scoring single into shallow center over the heads of the drawn-in infield. One pitch later, Sam Riola (2-for-4, 3B, RBI) recorded his 100th St. Cloud State hit in style with an RBI triple ripped down the right field line.
The Mustangs got a run back in the eighth, but SCSU responded in the home half courtesy of yet another Bevacqua run batted in – marking the lefthanded bat's sixth game in his last seven with at least one RBI. Grady Fuchs took the ball in the ninth and fired a 1-2-3, earning his second save of the day – marking the first time in exactly nine years that a Husky recorded two saves on the same day, as Reese Gregory was the last to do so with a pair of saves against Winona State on March 23, 2014, ironically also occurring in a neutral-site game held in the Omaha area.
Up Next
St. Cloud State begins a three-game weekend series with Augustana on Friday evening in Council Bluffs, Iowa. First pitch is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. CT at Doc Ellis Field.
For all the latest on St. Cloud State Baseball, stay tuned to SCSUHuskies.com and follow the team on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Game One: St. Cloud State 6, Southwest Minnesota State 3
Jack Habeck set the tone for St. Cloud State on the mound in his second start of the season, tossing 6.2 strong innings of three-run ball to earn the game one win. The southpaw struck out four while scattering seven hits and a pair of walks.
After Habeck showed off his moxie by escaping a two on, one out situation in the top of the first, SCSU plated four in the home half to provide early run support. John Nett (2-for-4, R, 2B) laced a single down the right field line, then Sam Riola (1-for-3, 2 R, 2B, RBI) reached on a fielder's choice. Sawyer Smith (0-for-3, R) grounded a ball to second that was mishandled, putting runners on the corners for a brief moment before the Huskies shortstop stole second. Garrett Bevacqua (1-for-3, R, RBI) rifled a seeing-eye single through the left side to plate Riola, then Otto Grimm (0-for-3, R, RBI) brought Smith home on a grounder to first that sputtered away from the Mustang one-bagger. Two batters later, Ethan Navratil (2-for-3, 2B, 2 RBI) blasted a two-run double the opposite way to cap off the four-run frame.
St. Cloud State added two more runs an inning later as Nett and Riola traded places with back-to-back doubles to open the second. Smith advanced Riola to third with a groundout to second, then a wild pitch brought the latter home for a 6-0 lead.
Habeck escaped a bases-loaded, nobody-out start to the third by allowing just one run then proceeded to retire 12 of the next 13 batters he faced. The Huskies captain was finally chased after four straight reached with two down in the seventh, giving way to Grady Fuchs. A three-pitch strikeout earned Fuchs his first collegiate save, closing out the 6-3 win.
Game Two: St. Cloud State 4, Southwest Minnesota State 1
A pitchers duel awaited St. Cloud State in the series finale as Drew Beier squared off with South Dakota State transfer Carter Petron. Beier pounded the zone and relied on a combination of strong defense and excellent command to complete 8.0 innings of one-run ball on just 90 pitches. The righty permitted just three hits and a pair of walks while striking out two and incredibly facing just one off the minimum through seven innings.
After Beier and Petron traded zeroes through one and a half complete, Ben Clapp (1-for-2, 2 BB, R, HR, RBI) cracked a missile of a solo shot to left on the first pitch he saw to lead off the bottom of the second. The lone run appeared to be all Beier would need as the righthander continued to carve up SMSU over the next five innings.
Fresh off the stretch in the bottom of the seventh, Garrett Bevacqua (1-for-3, R, 2B, RBI) extended his hitting streak to seven games with a leadoff double lined down the right field line. Otto Grimm (0-for-2, SH) laid down a sacrifice bunt, then Tate Wallat (1-for-1, R, RBI) poked a run-scoring single into shallow center over the heads of the drawn-in infield. One pitch later, Sam Riola (2-for-4, 3B, RBI) recorded his 100th St. Cloud State hit in style with an RBI triple ripped down the right field line.
The Mustangs got a run back in the eighth, but SCSU responded in the home half courtesy of yet another Bevacqua run batted in – marking the lefthanded bat's sixth game in his last seven with at least one RBI. Grady Fuchs took the ball in the ninth and fired a 1-2-3, earning his second save of the day – marking the first time in exactly nine years that a Husky recorded two saves on the same day, as Reese Gregory was the last to do so with a pair of saves against Winona State on March 23, 2014, ironically also occurring in a neutral-site game held in the Omaha area.
Up Next
St. Cloud State begins a three-game weekend series with Augustana on Friday evening in Council Bluffs, Iowa. First pitch is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. CT at Doc Ellis Field.
For all the latest on St. Cloud State Baseball, stay tuned to SCSUHuskies.com and follow the team on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Players Mentioned
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