Game one
Game two
NAMPA, Idaho - Freshman
Josh Hatfield's 10th inning walk-off RBI double down the leftfield line lifted the Northwest Nazarene baseball team to a 2-1 victory over Montana State University Billings on Saturday afternoon in the second game of a Great Northwest Athletic Conference doubleheader at Vail Field. The Yellowjackets won the opener 6-5 as the teams split the four-game series 2-2.
Hatfield's game-winner was set up by
Logan Parker, who singled into leftfield off MSUB reliever Mike Waldorf. Waldorf came in relief of starter Brian Hutchings in the top of the 10th. Hutchings had surrendered just one run, struck out five and walked one in the opening nine innings.
Waldorf (0-1) took the loss for MSUB (9-12, 2-6 GNAC), while
Kalen Hruza (3-0) earned the win for the Crusaders.
Hruza pitched the top of the 10th, relieving Crusader starter
Sean McDonald. McDonald also went nine innings, giving up just six hits while striking out three and walking two.
The Crusaders (17-7, 6-6 GNAC) scored the opening run in the third when
Ty Windall reached on a bunt single, moved to third on a
Derek Bettinson single to rightfield, and scored on
Ryan VanBeek's sacrifice fly ball to centerfield. Bettinson and Parker each finished with three hits for the Crusaders and Hatfield, the reigning GNAC Player of the Week, had two.
MSUB matched the Crusaders run in the sixth when Dillon Ness walked, moved to second on a McDonald wild pitch, and scored from second on Colby Robison's RBI single to rightfield.
Game One
The Yellowjackets led 4-3 into the seventh inning when Jeff Ridgeway sent a two-run home run into right field for the eventual game-winning runs for the second-straight day. Ridgeway's solo home run in Friday's nightcap was also the game-winning run for MSUB.
The Crusaders would rally against MSUB closer Brian Howe to close the gap to one in the ninth off a VanBeek RBI double and a Parker run-scoring single. But Howe would earn his fourth save of the year, retiring NNU's
Kramer Uvila for the final out with Parker on first.
Kyle Gieselman (1-1) earned the win and
Zeb Sneed (1-3) took the loss for the Crusaders.
NNU will be back on the diamond next weekend, hosting The Academy of Art University in a four-game NCAA D.II West Region non-conference series.
