OMAHA, Neb. -- The No. 16 Bellevue University baseball team remained perfect at home as they completed a four-game series sweep of Dakota State University on Saturday afternoon to clinch the North Star Athletic Association regular season championship.
The sweep also clinches the top seed in the NSAA Tournament, set for May 3-6 in Dickinson, N.D.
Bellevue improves to 34-11 overall and 19-1 in conference play, while Dakota State slides to 31-14 (14-6 NSAA).
Following the conclusion of the series finale, BU recognized 16 seniors – Tyler Monroe, Cade Brock Townsend, Cade Herrmann, Bryce Zimmerer, Tradd Richardson, Alec Ackerman, Blake Crippen, Brendan Luther, Takumi Maeno, Easton Brinton, Jose Villagomez, Nick Grade, Gage Juhlin, Ayden Adams, Dustin Schorie, and Jacob Pubill – for their contributions to the program.
Game One: BU 10, DSU 1
Bellevue put together a complete game to secure the series victory, winning 10-1 in the third game of this weekend's series.
Jake Lacey, Anthony Lind, and Takumi Maeno all homered and Bruin pitching scattered six hits.
Lind and Maeno each blasted solo home runs in the second inning around a squeeze bunt from CJ Townsend as the Bruins led 3-0 after two.
Jeremy Green pulled a run back for the Trojans with a ground ball to score Dawson Portner in the third.
Bellevue answered with a double down the line to plate Brendan Luther in the home half, and DSU turned to star reliever JD Kirchner.
Kircher escaped the inning without further damage, but the first three batters reached in the fourth before Jake Lacey launched a game-breaking grand slam to left-center as the Bruins pushed their lead to 8-1.
A wild pitch scored Lind in the fifth, and Maeno doubled home Nick Grade later in the frame.
Dustin Schorie (7-1) limited Dakota State to a run on four hits over five innings. Parker McMan and Easton Brinton each fired scoreless innings in relief.
Will Clair (8-2) took the loss for DSU, surrendering four runs (two earned) on five hits in just 2.1 innings.
Game Two: BU 10, DSU 9
Bellevue held on to win a wild back-and-forth affair 10-9 to complete the series sweep and clinch the regular season title.
The Bruins threatened in the first, putting runners on second and third with one out, but were unable to capitalize.
Aidan Perry put Dakota State in front a half inning later with a wall-scraping two-run home run.
That lead was short-lived as Bellevue struck for three in the bottom of the inning. Jake Lacey wore a pitch with the bases loaded, and Logan Grant followed with a two-run double down deep down the right field line.
Bellevue pushed the lead to three in the third with a pair of unearned runs. With runners on first and second in the fifth, Cameron DeMaria lifted a ball to right that Anthony Lind leaped at but was just out of his reach and fell over the wall for a three-run home run, tying the game.
Lacey put the Bruins back in front with a two-run shot to left-center, and Grant made it back-to-back jacks with a majestic shot to right.
Bubba Thompson and Ned Ceklic delivered solo shots in the sixth and eighth, respectively, to pull within two runs, 8-6. Later in the eighth, Jeremy Green tied the game with a single to right to score Perry.
Steven Elsner again provided a loud BU response with a no-doubt two-run blast in the eighth.
Walker Hultgren reached on an error with two outs in the ninth that allowed a run to come in from second, and a wild pitch moved Hultgren, the tying run, to third, but Teron Williams induced a ground ball to first to end the game.
Williams (3-0) picked up his second win of the weekend, allowing just an unearned run in 1.1 innings of relief work.
JD Kirchner (3-2) took the loss for the Trojans.
Up Next:
Bellevue wraps up the regular season next weekend when they host Viterbo University for a four-game set beginning on Friday, Apr. 26 at 1 p.m.
