SMSU BASEBALL: Mustangs head to Tucson for seven games starting today
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MARSHALL -- The Southwest Minnesota State University baseball team (1-4) continues non-conference play this week with its annual spring trip to Tucson, Ariz., where the team will play seven games in seven days at the Tucson Invitational. All but one of the games will be played at the Kino Sports Complex.
•SMSU begins the trip today versus Concordia-St. Paul at 4 p.m. CST. On Friday, SMSU takes on Mount Marty (S.D.) starting at 7 p.m. CST.
•SMSU faces Dakota Wesleyan (S.D.) on Saturday at 5 p.m. CST at Reid Park Field. This will be the Mustangs’ only game not played at the Kino Sports Complex.
•On Sunday, SMSU and CSP meet again starting at 8:30 p.m. CDT, before SMSU faces another NSIC foe, Bemidji State, on Monday starting at 11 a.m. CDT.
•SMSU will take on Waldorf (Iowa) on Tuesday at 11 a.m. CDT, before closing the trip with an 11 a.m. CDT match-up versus Mayville State (N.D.)
Game coverage
•Live statistics for all seven games will be available at smsumustangs.com.
•Updates can also be found by following @smsubaseball on Twitter.
Series history
•SMSU and CSP meet for the 62nd and 63rd time this week with CSP leading 35-26. CSP won four of the five meetings last season, including twice in Tucson and then winning two of three in conference play in Joplin, Mo.
•SMSU and Mount Marty meet up for the 11th time with SMSU leading 6-4. SMSU won the last meeting, 9-6 on March 10, 2018, in Tucson.
•SMSU is 2-1 all-time versus Dakota Wesleyan, splitting a doubleheader on March 24, 2010, in Mitchell, S.D., before SMSU earned an 18-5 win on March 6, 2018, in Tucson.
•SMSU holds a 103-65 all-time series advantage over Bemidji State. SMSU won three of four games in Marshall the last time the teams played on May 4-5, 2018. The two teams last played in Tucson during the 2015 season.
•SMSU and Waldorf meet for the first time ever on Tuesday.
•SMSU is 0-2-1 all-time versus Mayville State. MSU won 5-4 in the last game played during the 2014 season in Tucson.
SMSU last time out
•SMSU split a non-conference doubleheader with Minnesota Duluth on Feb. 27 at US Bank Stadium in Minneapolis.
•SMSU won the opener 3-2 with a two-run rally in the bottom of the seventh. Nathan Kuhn tied the game with a sac fly before Kip Gronholz singled in the winning run for the walk-off victory.
•SMSU built a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the sixth on a run-scoring, two-out single by Matt Bezdicek. Gronholz started the rally with a single and later stole second with two outs before Bezdicek came through with the clutch single to left field.
•UMD would rally off of relief pitcher Teddy Broxterman with a pair of runs in the top of the seventh to take a brief one-run lead.
•SMSU starter John Bezdicek was outstanding as he tied a career-high with 14 strikeouts in six innings and allowed just four hits. He did not have a three-ball count in the game and finished his outing throwing 88 pitches with 66 for strikes.
•Gronholz finished the game 3 for 4 with a run and an RBI, while Derek Smith finished with a pair of hits.
•In game two, UMD took advantage of 10 walks and earned a 7-0 victory despite collecting only four hits.
•SMSU was held to just two hits with Kuhn and Ben Heichel each collecting one hit.
Mustang
diamond notes
•Kip Gronholz is batting .500 (7 for 14) in four games with a double and two stolen bases.
•Matt Bezdicek and Nathan Kuhn both have four hits this season.
•Brady Lanoue has a team-high two home runs and also leads the team in RBIs (3) and total bases (9).
•Left-hander John Bezdicek is 1-1 with a 1.64 ERA in 11 innings with 21 strikeouts and one walk.
•Bezdicek ranks first in team history in strikeouts per nine innings at 11.1. He also has moved into 10th all-time with 139 strikeouts.
•Right-hander Jeremiah Van De Steeg was outstanding versus Missouri Southern two weeks ago as he tossed seven shutout innings and allowed just two hits with eight strikeouts.
•SMSU is batting .214 through five games, while opponents are hitting .259.
•The SMSU pitching staff has a 4.95 ERA in 36 1/3 innings with 47 strikeouts.
NSIC schedule
•For the second straight season, all NSIC weekend series will be three-game sets. The teams will play one seven and one nine-inning game the first day and will close the series with a nine-inning game the following day.
•All weekday match-ups will be doubleheaders with one seven-inning game and one nine-inning game.
More Mustang stats
•For career statistics and game-highs for each Mustang player go to SMSUmustangs.com/baseballcareer.
Next up
•Southwest Minnesota State will open NSIC play on March 14-15 with a three-game series at Upper Iowa.
-- Content courtesy
of SMSU Athletic
Communications