Huskies ready for battle with Golden Bears

Friday, April 7

Sioux City, Iowa

Noon CT

St. Cloud State

Concordia-St. Paul

Photo by: Ryan Roehl

4/6/2023 8:00:00 PM | Baseball

Series Notes Watch Live - NSIC Network Live Stats

SCSU takes on Concordia-St. Paul in key weekend set on Iowa/Nebraska border

ST. CLOUD, Minn – St. Cloud State Baseball (15-10, 7-3 NSIC) hits the road for a neutral-site weekend series with Concordia-St. Paul (11-13, 7-4 NSIC) in Sioux City, Iowa and Wayne Nebraska as the Huskies look to gain ground in a tight race at the top of the conference standings. Games one and two will be played as part of a doubleheader at Bishop Mueller Field in Sioux City on Friday, April 7 at noon CT while the finale is set for a 1:00 p.m. CT first pitch at Wayne Ball Park.

BROADCAST INFORMATION
All three games of the series will be featured on the NSIC Network with live stats provided by St. Cloud State State. Fans can find links to each streaming option on the SCSU Baseball schedule page.

LAST TIME OUT
St. Cloud State picked up a fantastic start from redshirt senior righthander Sam Riola while the lineup supplied plenty of early run support in an 8-5 win over Winona State in Winona on Monday afternoon, securing a road series victory. Riola spun a gem for his second win of the season, allowing a lone earned run across 6.0 innings of eight-hit baseball. The righthander struck out six and walked just one while going 2-for-4 at the plate with a double, a run scored, an RBI and two stolen bases. SCSU got on the board early as John Nett (1-for-4, HBP, 2 R, RBI) reached on an error to lead off the game and scored two batters later on a Riola RBI double. After Garrett Bevacqua (2-for-5, R, 2B, 2 RBI) moved Riola ahead with a groundout, Drew Bulson (1-for-3, 2 BB, RBI) plated him on a single to left. Winona State responded with a run in the first and tied the game at two in the second. The Huskies plated three an inning later as Bevacqua doubled home Nett and Drew Beier (1-for-4, HBP, 2 R, HR, RBI) before scoring on a Tyler Schiller (1-for-3, BB, RBI, SF) sacrifice fly. Beier crushed a solo home run out to right with two away in the fourth inning, then St. Cloud State added a pair in the fifth to take an 8-2 lead into the home half. Ethan Lanthier took over in the seventh and proceeded to fire a 3.0-inning save, allowing a lone run on two hits while striking out four batters.

STANDINGS & SUCH
A critical stretch continues for the Huskies as each of their next two series feature conference rivals currently in the top five of the NSIC standings. The Huskies are a game and a half out of first, sitting in fourth place with a 7-3 conference record. Concordia-St. Paul resides in fifth at 7-4, just a half-game behind SCSU.

SCOUTING THE GOLDEN BEARS
Concordia-St. Paul enters the weekend set at 11-13 with a 7-4 record in NSIC play. The Golden Bears are anchored on weekends by righthanders Korey Dahlberg and Jonah Lewis, each boasting ERA marks south of 3.75. Dahlberg is 3-3 with a 3.71 ERA, striking out 34 with just 10 walks over 34.0 innings of work. Lewis earned Central Region Pitcher of the Week honors earlier this season and has gone 1-3 with an ERA of 3.21 over 33.2 frames, striking out 36 while walking 11. The rest of the staff has struggled, as only closer Eric Lundell (2-0, 1 SV, 2.11 ERA, 21.1 IP, 19:7 K:BB) and reliever Carter Schulte (1.59 ERA, 5 APP, 5.2 IP) have recorded an ERA below 6.50 this season. Third baseman Bryce Nelson has been a steady piece of the CSP lineup, slashing .349/.439/.458 for an .897 OPS with three doubles and three triples. Leftfielder Noah Juliar leads the club with 24 RBI while rightfielder Nick Thimsen holds the high marks with eight doubles and three home runs.

THE TABLE IS SET
Junior centerfielder John Nett is enjoying a phenomenal campaign leading off a potent Huskies lineup that leads the NSIC in runs per game, batting average and on-base percentage while ranking top-four in nearly every major category. Nett is slashing .449/.530/.684 for a 1.214 OPS with 33 runs scored, 12 doubles, a triple, three home runs and 24 RBI. Entering the weekend, Nett ranks third across the NSIC in hits, doubles, runs scored and batting average; fourth in on-base percentage; sixth in stolen bases and seventh in both OPS and slugging percentage.

WALK THIS WAY
Junior left fielder Tyler Schiller has drawn 21 free passes this season, currently ranking third across the NSIC. Schiller's strong approach has seen him work walks in 25.0% of his trips to the plate while striking out just 13.1% of the time. Incredibly, the lefthanded bat has taken ball four 12 times in 34 plate appearances with runners in scoring postion - good for a 35.3% walk rate. A native of Hutchinson, Schiller's steady on-base presence has him sixth in the NSIC with a .506 OBP.

CLOSING TIME
Junior righthander Grady Fuchs has earned a save in four of his last five appearances while retiring 21 of 25 batters faced in that span. Fuchs has made a staff-leading nine appearances this season and has thrown 16.1 innings to the tune of a 3.86 ERA, striking out 18 while maintaining a 1.16 WHIP. The righthander has been especially tough on lefthanded hitters, limiting them to just two hits in 18 at-bats for a .111 batting average and a .415 OPS.

GETTING DEFENSIVE
Redshirt senior catcher Drew Bulson has taken a major step forward with his work behind the plate this season, currently leading the NSIC with eight runners thrown out on a 42.1% caught-stealing rate while guiding the SCSU pitching staff to a 3.94 ERA when he is catching. Both numbers currently stand as career-bests as the St. Cloud native has bumped his CSR by over 20% and lowered his catcher ERA by half a run. Bulson's defensive chops are supported by a productive season at the plate, as he currently slashes .384/.484/.589 for a 1.073 OPS with six doubles, three home runs and 18 RBI.

For all the latest on St. Cloud State Baseball, stay tuned to SCSUHuskies.com and follow the team on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.