University of St. Thomas Athletics
Gustavus Adolphus
Baseball sweeps Gusties, wins outright MIAC title
5/2/2009 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Matt Olson drove in three runs with a triple and single and helped St.Thomas secure an unprecedented seventh consecutive MIAC baseball title with Saturday's 5-2 and 11-2 sweep of visiting Gustavus at UST's Koch Diamond.
Roy Larson reached in all six trips (4-for-4, walk, HBP) on the day for the No. 7-ranked Tommies (27-9 overall, 15-5 MIAC), who improved to 9-1 at home this season.
UST needed the sweep as second-place St. Olaf swept Carleton, 7-6 and 13-3, and finished one game back at 14-6 in the conference.
The Tommies have had 11 championships, three seconds and one third in the conference regular-season standings under 15-year head coach Dennis Denning.
St. Thomas got complete-game pitching wins and no walks from freshman Bryce Gapinski (one earned run, six hits) and senior Brady Gibbs (seven hits, two runs and three strikeouts). Gibbs improved to 7-0 on his career and had his third strong outing in the last 12 days.
UST trailed the Gusties 2-0 in game one before Olson's two-out triple off the right-field fence in the fourth inning knotted the score 2-2.
In the bottom of the sixth, UST Brian Schmitz had a leadoff single. Pinch-runner Kirk Baglien then scored on Larson's triple to center field. Tom Wippler followed with an RBI triple, and later scored on Olson's RBI single for the three-run cushion.
The Tommies slugged 18 hits in game two. Schmitz' three-run homer capped a six-run second inning, which included a triple and single in the same inning by Taylor Rahm. Gibbs allowed two runs and seven hits to move to 7-0 on his career.
Matt McQuillan and Matt Olson each had four hits on the day and Schmitz added three for the Toms.
The Tommies are the top seed for the four-team MIAC playoffs, which start next Friday in Northfield and Dundas. On Sunday, UST plays a nine-inning game in Duluth at 3 p.m., against No. 3-rated St. Scholastica. The teams split a Metrodome doubleheader March 1.
UST also has a home nine-inning game on Tuesday against Northwestern at 3 p.m.
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Click here for Game 1 box score:
http://www.tommiesports.com/bsbl/stats/5-2-dh1.htm
Click here for Game 2 box score:
