MLC sweeps Presentation

By JIM BASTIAN

Journal Sports Writer

NEW ULM -- Martin Luther College got complete-game pitching performances from Nate Hochmuth and Dan Frey as the Knights swept an Upper Midwest Athletic Conference doubleheader with Presentation College.

Hochmuth fanned nine and allowed just three Saint hits in a 6-2 win while Frey scattered five hits in a 12-2 win in the nightcap.

The second game was called after five innings because of the 10-run rule.

"This was a nice weekend for us," said Knight head coach Drew Buck who saw his team improve to 7-11 in the UMAC and 9-16 overall. "We had some kids hitting the ball this weekend (35 hits in three games). We had some kids that had been struggling who hit the ball which is just in time for post-season play."

MLC is off until Thursday when they meet Crown College in the first round of the UMAC Tournament.

In the first game, MLC broke open a scoreless game with a single run in the bottom of the third when Jeff Dolan walked after two were out. He stole second and third before coming home on Dan Frey's single. The Knights added two more runs in the bottom of the fifth on back-to-back triples by Joel Kolberg and Dolan coupled with a Jon Bauer sacrifice fly.

Presentation, in their first year of baseball, sliced the lead to 3-2 with two runs in the top of the sixth before MLC added three insurance runs in the bottom of the inning.

Noah Bater singled and scored on Brett Krause's triple -- the third triple of the game for MLC. Krause trotted home on an error for a 5-2 lead.

Another error plated the sixth run of the game for the Knights.

Jeff Dolan, Dan Frey and Joel Kolberg all had two hits in the game.

In the nightcap, the Knights jumped to a 4-0 lead after the first inning and never looked back.

Jeff Dolan, Dan Frey, Shane Krause, Noah Bater and Ryan Holper each had two hits in the 12-hit attack. Frey and Bater each had a double with Bater adding a three-run first inning home run.

Frey got the win as he fanned four in the five-inning contest.

The Knights scored three runs in the first inning on an error, a Frey single and a blast by Noah Bater over the fence in left field. MLC tacked on two more runs in the second when Ryan Holper singled and eventually scored on an error. Frey followed with a two-out double and was brought in by a Shane Krause' single.

It became 8-0 in the third on an RBI single by Holper and a fielder's choice.

Presentation plated two runs in the top of the fourth before MLC countered with three in the bottom of the inning. Bater, who doubled earlier in the inning, scored on a Tim Hochmuth sacrifice fly. Paul Bowe's infield single added another run before Frey was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded.

The Knights then ended the game in the bottom of the fifth on a hit batsman and two errors.

Buck was happy with his team's play going into post-season. "We had no triples this season before this week and we had seven this weekend," he said. "We added two home runs -- this will be a positive boost for us before playoffs."