Seniors highlight DH sweep in regular season finale Saturday

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT Evan O’Kelly Director of Communications O: (406) 657-2130 E: evan.okelly@msubillings.edu Saturday, May 6, 2017 Seniors highlight DH sweep in regular season finale Saturday

Zach Robinson makes the catch of the year in center and has a walk-off single in Game 1, and the Yellowjackets sweep a doubleheader against Central Washington on Senior Day Saturday at Dehler Park.

BILLINGS, Mont. – Zach Robinson made the catch of the year and had a walk-off hit, Casey Merritt singled in his final career plate appearance at Dehler Park, and Jalen Garcia hit a game tying, two-run home run as the Montana State University Billings baseball team swept a Great Northwest Athletic Conference doubleheader over Central Washington University on Senior Day Saturday.

Robinson couldn’t out-run his teammates in the bottom of the ninth inning in Game 1, as he was mobbed behind first base after his single up the middle plated Andrew Schleusner to end a 6-5 win for the ‘Jackets. He did however catch up to Dylan Freyre’s gap shot into right center in the top of the first inning in Game 1, leaving his feet on a full-on sprint and snagging the ball out of mid-air while parallel to the ground above the warning track near the wall. “I knew I was in a good spot, and all I had to do was put it in play really,” Robinson commented on the game-winning hit. “Our offense and

pitching is starting to come together as one, and it seems like this weekend we really meshed. It’s good to have this feeling going into next weekend with the GNAC Championship on the line.”

Garcia also had one of the finest defensive plays of the year, making a catch in right field and throwing around 250 feet in the air to third base to nail Kyle Stahl trying to advance for a double play. The sophomore proceeded to hit his fifth home run in the bottom of the sixth to tie the score 4-4, and Conner Linebarger followed with a game-winning, RBI-single in MSUB’s 5-4, series clinching win. “I saw it was going to be a deep fly in the gap, and I knew the guy was going to try to go, so I was just trying to get my best throw on it,” said Garcia. “I was just trying to put a good swing on the ball and try to do something big for those seniors. We wanted to end the regular season with a win, and I’m happy for those guys.”

The Yellowjackets screamed through the final stretch of the 2017 regular season, winning nine of their last 12 games and their last three GNAC series to end the year tied for third place with Northwest Nazarene. MSUB enters next week’s GNAC Championships at 23-27 overall, and 21-19 in league play. The ‘Jackets will play No. 1 seed and regularseason champion Western Oregon University on Garcia’s right foot plants around 10 feet shy of the warning track in right center Wednesday at 7 p.m. Pacific time at Porter Park on (left), where he threw on a line all the way to Linebarger at third to nail the runner trying to advance (right). the campus of Concordia University in Portland, Ore. Live video with play-by-play commentary and live statistics will be available online through GNAC.tv.

The Wildcats will enter the tournament as the No. 2 seed, finishing the regular season 29-21 overall and just ahead of MSUB at 23-17 in conference action.

The day after the teams combined to score 47 runs in a doubleheader, only 20 total crossed the plate in a pair of onerun victories for the ‘Jackets. Tristan Shockley pitched into the eighth inning in the Game 1 win, and Steen Fredrickson and Michael Gahan combined to shut the door over the final five innings to help seal the victory in the nightcap. “We set our goal in the middle of the season to be playing our best baseball at the end of the year, and I’m really proud of the way these guys have turned the corner here these last three series,” said MSUB head coach Aaron Sutton. “To end off senior day with the series win is huge for these guys.”

Garcia went 4-for-6 with four RBIs and three runs scored in the doubleheader, and Merritt finished 3-for-7. “I couldn’t have asked for a better home park to play in, and I’ve had a tremendous four years here,” Merritt commented after his final career home game. “We are pretty hot right now, and if we can continue playing the way we are it is going to turn out pretty well (next week).”

Robinson scored twice in the opener, and broke Luke Reinschmidt’s single-season record of 50 runs scored as he leads the team with 51 so far this year.

Game 1 – MSU Billings 5, Central Washington 4 Schleusner went to the plate to advance pinch runner Kade Hall into scoring position with the score tied at 5-5, but wound up at third base with one out after his bunt was thrown down the right-field line. The Wildcats preserved the tie by throwing Hall out at the plate, but Robinson’s game-winning single followed in the very next at-bat to end the game.

MSUB had a 5-3 lead entering the top of the ninth inning, but Dylan Freyre and Connor Plaisance each plated runs to tie the score. The ‘Jackets took the lead with a three-run seventh inning, as Caje Golden led off with a double and Max Hartgraves, Robinson, and Merritt all followed with runscoring hits to make it a 5-2 ballgame.

Shockley wound up with the no decision as MSUB blew the late lead, but the junior right-hander had his best start of the year. He scattered three runs on 10 hits over seven-plus innings, and struck out three while walking one and throwing a season-high 106 pitches. Garrett Helfrich inherited two runners on with no outs in the eighth, but limited the damage to a single run on a wild pitch while retiring all three batters he faced.

Junior Tristan Shockley pitched MSUB into the eighth inning in Game 1 Saturday.

Central Washington starter Griffin Davis was strong through six innings, striking out five and walking a pair while giving up four runs on six hits. The ‘Jackets plated a run in the first inning on a sacrifice fly by Garcia, and Plaisance had a catch that rivaled Robinson’s grab to prevent Garcia’s drive from landing for extra bases on the track in right-center.

MSUB was blanked until the sixth inning, when Linebarger picked up his first RBI of the day on a single to left field to score Garcia.

Stahl went 3-for-5 in the first game for the ‘Cats and Freyre had a pair of RBIs, but CWU stranded nine baserunners as missed opportunities cost the visitors in the narrow loss.

Game 2 – MSU Billings 5, Central Washington 4 Fredrickson was at the root of putting a stop to CWU’s rally in the third inning, as he entered the game with a runner on second, four runs already home, and no outs. After striking out Freyre, the sophomore sprinted to the plate to cover on a wild pitch, and slapped a tag on Rory Graf-Brennen for the second out of the inning on a feed by Schleusner.

After getting Plaisance to fly out and end the inning, Fredrickson was untouchable the rest of the way. He earned the win with three strikeouts and one hit allowed over four innings, helping MSUB keep the deficit manageable until its three-run rally in the sixth shifted momentum.

Fredrickson had help along the way, as Garcia continued the theme of outfield excellence with a remarkable play in the top of the fifth.

Positioning himself behind a high fly ball off the bat of Freyre in deep right field, Garcia gathered his momentum and uncorked a 250-foot strike that carried to Linebarger at third without a bounce. The most impressive throw of the season just beat Stahl – who was tagging from second on the play – and ended the inning to keep the score at 4-2.

Merritt set the table for Garcia’s game-tying homer with a leadoff single in the bottom of the sixth, tallying the 144th hit of his stellar career in his final time at bat at Dehler Park.

After Linebarger’s knock put MSUB ahead, Gahan took the ball and notched his first career save with a 1-2-3 seventh inning including backto-back strikeouts to end the game.

CWU starter JJ Asinas gave up four runs on seven hits and struck out a pair in five innings, before Micah Richardson surrendered the gamewinning hit to Linebarger.

Jarod Paul made his first career start on the hill for the ‘Jackets and tossed two frames.

Steen Fredrickson gave up just one run in four shutout innings of relief Saturday.

THE BUZZ: Robinson was named the St. Vincent Healthcare Player of the Day…MSUB tied the school record for stolen bases in a year, matching the total from the 2006 year with 65 through 50 games this spring…MSUB split the season series with CWU, after the ‘Cats won 3 of 4 games in Ellensburg, Wash., at the end of March…MSUB only lost one season series this year, defeating Saint Martin’s and Concordia 6-2, splitting with CWU and Northwest Nazarene 4-4, and falling to Western Oregon 7-1.

CHAMPIONSHIP RUN: MSUB heads west for the GNAC tournament next week, and is guaranteed at least two more games to close the 2017 season. This is the third year in-a-row MSUB will play in the conference tournament, and fourth time in the last five seasons the ‘Jackets have advanced to postseason play.

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