Spartan Baseball played three games over the weekend in Surprise, Arizona, against New Mexico, Oregon State and Northwestern.
MSU won their season opener Friday night against New Mexico with a final score of 9-3. The game tied at 3-3 in the eighth, but after an incredible six runs in the final two innings, the Spartans pulled ahead and started their 2015 season with a victory.
Senior Blaise Satler started the eighth with a leadoff single, while third basemen Mark Weist followed with a double down the right field line, putting runners on second and third, with no outs. After a sacrifice fly from seniors Ryan Krill and Anthony Cheky, MSU took the lead 5-3.
In the game’s final frame, MSU extended their lead to 9-3, making it the sixth season opener win (out of seven) for head coach Jake Boss.
The next day MSU lost to two-time defending Pac-12 champion Oregon State in extra innings. The Spartans tied up the game 3-3 by the ninth inning, but a single with bases loaded in the 10th gave Oregon State the 4-3 victory.
“Good ball game against a very good team,”Boss said. “They have a lot of experience and are going to win a lot of games this year. For us, I thought our guys showed a lot of character. We got down early and tied it back up. There’s no such thing as a good loss, but at the same time there is a lot we can take away from it. We need to do a better job of taking advantage of opportunities and doing the little things it takes to win.”
The Spartans were held scoreless until junior Cam Gibson led off the sixth inning with a standup triple to left-center, where freshman Brandon Hughes brought him home on the very next pitch.
There was a spark of hope in the bottom of the sixth when sophomore Johnny Nate made a diving stop in the infield for the second out. Oregon State responded with an RBI double in the next at-bat and regained their two-point lead.
MSU couldn’t recover and lost 4-3.
The Spartans closed out their final game of the weekend against Northwestern with a 3-2 victory.
MSU led through the sixth, with two points. In the seventh, Northwestern tied the score until senior Chase Toth scored, unearned, edging MSU into the lead.
The Spartans travel to Texas next weekend, with a 2-1 overall, to play Houston Baptist, UT Arlington and Southeastern Louisiana.
