BILLINGS, Mont. – Overcoming a 10-run deficit in the series finale against Saint Martin's University highlighted a drenched Friday afternoon at Joe Pirtz Field for the Montana State University Billings baseball team, as it split a Great Northwest Athletic Conference doubleheader.
 
The Saints stormed to a 22-11 victory in Game 1 on Friday, before the Yellowjackets erased a 13-3 deficit and scored 13 unanswered runs to pull off a 16-13 win in the series finale. "I'm really impressed with the grit and resilience our team showed today, with their ability to come back from such a big deficit," said MSUB head coach Derek Waddoups. "I'm just proud to be a part of the 'Jacket family. What a gritty and amazing comeback with different individuals stepping up for us."
 
Mitch Winter was the standout player on Friday, homering three times in the doubleheader while reaching base in 6 of 9 plate appearances, driving in six runs, and scoring four times. Carson Green hit two home runs in Game 1, and James Anderson also homered in the opener to cap a five-home run game for the 'Jackets. MSUB improved to 22-20 overall and is now 13-11 in conference play with Friday's split. "Mitch was a difference-maker all weekend, and he showed his power and ability to hit," Waddoups said on the slugger, who hit four home runs in the series.
 
Dakota Hill had seven RBIs on the day, while reaching base in 6 of 12 plate appearances. Hunter Kosmider was 4-for-6 with four RBIs, while Cody Chavis went 4-for-7 with four runs scored and four runs driven in. Saint Martin's moved to 15-26 overall and is now 10-14 in conference play.
 
The worst playing conditions of the year for either team featured a steady downpour in the nightcap with temperatures never rising above the mid-40s. The unfavorable weather resulted in a combined 37 walks, 17 hit batters, and 794 pitches thrown in more than seven hours of game time. The teams combined to score 62 runs on 39 hits, and the doubleheader also featured 14 wild pitches, eight errors, a passed ball, and a balk.
 
Game 1 – Saint Martin's 22, MSU Billings 11
 
The Yellowjackets used a five-run eighth inning to pull within two runs, down 13-11, but fell apart in the ninth as the Saints scored nine runs to run away with Game 1 late.
 
It was a story of big innings in the opener, as the Saints scored five times in the top of the first before adding five more in the seventh. The Saints' big first inning featured three walks, two hits and an error, as the visitors got to MSUB starter Jackson Betancourt early on.
 
Green hit the first pitch thrown by SMU starter Troy McCormick over the fence in right field, helping the Yellowjackets respond immediately and get on the scoreboard.
 
Coming on in early relief, Sage Wayment stranded a pair of baserunners to get MSUB out of the second inning, and a fielding miscue set up Winters' second big home run of the weekend. The slugger blasted a no-doubt long ball deep over the fence in right field, plating Mason Powell and pulling the 'Jackets within two down 5-3.
 
SMU bolstered its lead in the fourth on back-to-back RBIs by Chavis and Reid Little, before the 'Jackets took advantage of one of the four errors SMU committed to score twice in the fifth to make the score 7-5.
 
A pair of hit batters and a walk in the seventh led to another big inning, while Hill had the big swing of the bat with a two-out, two-run single to cap the scoring and put the visitors ahead 13-5.
 
Winter led off the eighth with his second home run of the game, and Anderson followed later in the inning with a two-run blast to pull MSUB within two, down 13-11. Chavis was hit by a pitch to start the ninth however, and SMU sent 14 hitters to the plate in the nightmare inning that cost the 'Jackets a chance at a comeback win.
 
Colin Driscoll struck out a pair of batters over the final 1 2/3 innings of work on the mound, while McCormick limited MSUB to five runs on three hits in five innings to earn his first win of the year. The Yellowjackets pieced together Game 1 with seven different pitchers.
 
Game 2 – MSU Billings 16, Saint Martin's 13 (7 Innings)
 
In near-unplayable conditions, pitchers on both sides had extraordinary difficulty maintaining command of any of their pitches. After the Saints struck for a huge seven-run first inning, MSUB rallied late with eight runs in the fifth, and five more in the sixth to pull ahead for good.
 
The two biggest swings of the bat in the game came from PJ Ausmus – who cleared the bases with a three-run triple in the fifth – and Kevin Blair – whose two-out, three-run double in the sixth broke a 13-13 tie and proved to be the game-winning hit. "Kevin coming in for Cooper and being able to get the game-winning RBIs was really huge for our team," Waddoups said.
 
Brooks Zimmer earned his second win of the season, handling the adversity masterfully with just one run allowed on two hits while striking out three and walking two in 3 1/3 innings pitched to finish the game. "Brooks was outstanding on the mound," said Waddoups. "He was really composed and pounded the zone, and he was a game-changer for us."
 
The Saints led off the game with back-to-back infield singles, starting a first inning that featured 12 hitters, four hits, four walks, and an error to make the score 7-0 right away. SMU starter Cole Hatton put up a zero in the bottom of the first, on his way to allowing five runs on two hits with four strikeouts and five walks in 4 1/3 innings of work.
 
Three different Yellowjackets drove in runs during a three-run second inning, as MSUB got on the scoreboard and cut into the deficit. Saint Martin's scored the next six runs over the next three innings however, constructing a 10-run advantage and threatening to take the series 3-1.
 
Ausmus's double kicked off the fifth-inning rally, and Winter followed by demolishing a two-run home run to right field to score Ausmus. Green had an RBI-triple, and Anderson capped the eight-run frame with a two-run double to make the score 13-11.
 
After Zimmer posted a zero in the top of the sixth, three straight walks in the bottom of the frame loaded the bases to set up MSUB's comeback. The first two runs scored when Green and Anderson were hit by pitches, before Blair slashed the game-clinching double into the left-field corner. The second-year Yellowjacket also had one of the defensive plays of the day, leaping high to snag a would-be RBI-line drive off the bat of Little to end the third inning.
 
Zimmer shook off a one-out walk in the top of the seventh, stranding the runner on second to help secure the series split for the 'Jackets.
 
THE BUZZ: Winter was named the St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Day.
 
NEXT WEEK: The Yellowjackets hit the road to face Northwest Nazarene University in a four-game GNAC series in Nampa, Idaho. Live coverage for the weekend will be available online here.