Oakes wins first series at Bison helm

In a high-powered offensive game, the North Dakota State men’s baseball team took home the win for the third straight game down in Texas. Squaring up against an Abilene Christian team who posted a solid 36-21 record last season, the Bison now have a solid series win under their belt.

Similar to the first three contests, there was lots of scoring to be had in the early frames. Locked at a 4-4 tie after two innings, the Bison came alive behind the bat of redshirt freshman Zach Kluvers, who doubled down the left-field line. To keep things rolling, Cadyn Schwabe, who had himself a very nice opening weekend, ripped a single to score Kluvers. Following that, Schwabe was able to advance past home plate on a wild pitch issued by Wildcat Riley Bauman, pushing the score to 7-4.

When push came to shove, the Wildcats proved that they weren’t going to go down without a fight, as Grayson Tatrow launched a three-run homer to tie the score back up a seven-apiece. However, ACU’s pitching ultimately came back to bite them in the rear, as wild pitches in the eighth and ninth innings scored baserunners Logan Williams and Cadyn Schwabe.

In the bottom of the ninth, the Bison found themselves in a bit of a pickle, as ACU had the bases loaded down three runs, but RHP Jake Drew had other plans, as he fanned the final batter and secure the 10-7 win.

Leading the way for the Bison in their 10-run outing were juniors Brock Anderson (3-6) and Terrell Huggins (2 RBI’s), along with sophomore Schwabe, who crossed home three times.

Although five pitchers were used throughout the day, Shea Zetterman was able to earn his first career win, with closer Jake Drew notching his second save on the season.

The Bison will be back in action this Friday when they travel to St. George, Utah, to take on Dixie State.