SIU Edwardsville Erases Early Deficit to Win Series Opener, 14-6

EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. - Southern Illinois Edwardsville hit three home runs and scored 14 unanswered runs to beat North Dakota State 14-6 in the first of a four-game college baseball series Friday, March 2.

Mitch Matecki, Zach Hawkins and Chase Green each homered and finished with three RBIs for the Cougars (3-4), who scored three runs in the second and two in the third before going ahead for good with a five-run fourth.

Tim Colwell was 3-for-4, Nick Colwell went 2-for-3 with two doubles, and Zach Wentz hit a homered for North Dakota State (5-3), which had its four-game winning streak snapped.

NDSU broke open a scoreless game with a five-run second inning.  The Bison made two quick outs before Tyler Steen singled and Max Casper bunted his way on to start the rally.

Tim Colwell put the Bison ahead with an RBI single, Nick Colwell followed with a two-run double, and Wentz hit a two-run homer to the opposite field to make it a 5-0 lead.

NDSU managed only three hits the rest of the way.  Pinch hitters Trevor Jaunich and Nick Altavilla led off the ninth with back-to-back walks and moved up on a wild pitch, and David Ernst came off the bench to lift a sacrifice fly for the final run.

Bison starter John Straka allowed 10 runs, seven earned, on 11 hits with two walks and one strikeout in 3 2/3 innings and dropped to 1-2 with the loss.

SIUE starter Travis Felax allowed five runs on nine hits with no walks and one strikeout in five innings and upped his record to 2-1 with the win.

The series continues with a 1 p.m. doubleheader Saturday, March 3, and the series finale is scheduled for 12 p.m. Sunday, March 4.