ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Hamline baseball team (10-19, 5-11 MIAC) took on Saint John's (25-8, 15-7) this weekend in a three-game series, falling in all three contests. On Saturday, the Johnnies came out on the winning end of 11-9 and 14-4 decisions and they won Sunday's game 10-5.
 
HU will play again on Wednesday, hosting St. Thomas to CHS Field for a doubleheader starting at 2:30 p.m.
 
GAME 1: SAINT JOHN'S 11, HAMLINE 9
Despite scoring the second-most runs of any game this season and taking over the lead in the fifth after scoring eight runs, the Pipers would come up just short in the 11-9 Saint John's victory.
 
Hamline held a slight edge in hits in the game at 10-9, being led by two-hit efforts from sophomore Avery Nelson, first year Matt Rusch (who also drove in three runs), and first year Tyler Johnson.
 
The first few innings belonged to the Johnnies, as they hit a solo homer in the first and scored five runs in the second on three hits and three Piper errors.
 
Neither team was able to score again until the fifth inning, when the HU offense exploded for eight runs, stringing together six hits and taking advantage of two SJU errors to take an 8-6 lead. Junior Cullen Buck started the rally with a single to left which was followed up by a walk from first year Mac Enlow and a single from Nelson to load the bases.
 
Buck scored on a wild pitch and Rusch hit a three-run home run, accounting for the first four runs of the inning. Later in the inning Logan Tollefson would score on an SJU throwing error and Enlow would drive in a both Braeden Bourne and Johnson. The final run of the inning would come from an RBI-single from Nelson.
 
The Johnnies would tie it up in the bottom of the inning, scoring two runs to make it 8-8. Hamline would take a lead again in the sixth, as Johnson drove in Bourne with a single to right center. SJU would answer right back, however, using four hits to score three runs to make it 11-9 in their favor. The Saint John's defense shut down the Pipers in the top of the seventh to preserve the lead and earn the win.
 
Junior Ryan Conn started on the mound for HU, going the first 1.2 innings, giving up six runs (only one earned) on three hits. First year Max Gerstner pitched the next 2.1 innings giving up a run and Jonah Smallfield pitched the final two innings, giving up three runs (only two earned) on four hits. Smallfield would take the loss, moving to 1-3 on the year.
 
GAME 2: SAINT JOHN'S 14, HAMLINE 4 (7 INNINGS)
In game two of the Saturday doubleheader, the Saint John's offense really got going, recording 15 hits and seven walks on their way to the seven-inning win. The Pipers were held to five hits in the game, each coming from a different player.
 
A two-run homer for SJU in the second gave the Johnnies an early 2-0 lead. The Pipers would cut the lead in half in the third, when Johnson was driven in by Buck. Hamline would take the lead in the fifth after two runners scored on a Johnnie error. Johnson and Buck singled in the inning and both scored on the SJU misstep.
 
Saint John's scored three in the bottom of the fifth, which included a two-run homer to give themselves a 5-3 lead. They would add to their lead in the sixth, using four hits to score three more runs to make it 8-3.
 
In the top of the seventh, Bourne would double to start the inning, eventually coming across to score to make it a four-run game at 8-4. However, the Johnnies put together a rally in the bottom of the inning, scoring six additional runs to end the game in seven innings, instead of the scheduled nine, making the final 14-4.
 
Sophomore Braden Schneider started on the mound for HU, pitching the first five innings. He gave up five runs on six hits and four walks while striking out four. Hayden Ring, Taylor Just, and Xavier Bembnister all pitched in relief, but Schnieder would take the loss, moving to 1-2 on the season.
 
GAME 3: SAINT JOHN'S 10, HAMLINE 5
Similarly to game one of the series, the Pipers outhit the Johnnies in Sunday's game, with 10 hits to SJU's nine. Saint John's did tally six walks in the game, helping them have some extra base runners that would prove to be important. Buck and Rusch each had two hits for HU and senior Zack Langton drove in two runs.
 
SJU scored first in the game, as a leadoff walk was eventually driven in on an RBI single. Four hits and two walks in the fourth inning led to five more runs for Saint John's, as they led Hamline 6-0. Hamline got two of those runs back in the bottom of the inning, as Langton came up with a clutch two-out hit to score Buck and Rusch, making it 6-2.
 
Saint John's scored three runs in the fifth, despite only tallying one hit, and the opponents would trade runs in the sixth, making the score 10-3. HU got their run across on a sac fly from Rusch, who scored Enlow who had doubled earlier in the inning.
 
The Pipers would keep chipping away at the Johnnies' lead, scoring two more in the seventh. Langton started the rally by getting hit by a pitch. Bourne would then double. Langton scored on an RBI groundout from Owen Christenson and Bourne scored on an RBI single from Buck.
 
Hamline had a hit in each of the next two innings, but were not able to string anything together, leaving the final at 10-5.
 
First year Spencer Klika took the loss after pitching the first 3.1 innings. He gave up four runs on four hits and three walks. Smallfield, Dan Frederick, and Ring would all record relief appearances. Ring had a solid outing, pitching the final four innings, giving up just one run on two hits.