JAMESTOWN, N.D. (JimmieAthletics.com) –
Offense was in abundant supply once again for the 16th-ranked University of Jamestown baseball team at Jack Brown Stadium on Sunday.
Closing out the regular season schedule, the Jimmies defeated Viterbo (Wis.) 7-2 and Dakota State (S.D.) 23-8. It marked the second straight game UJ scored 20-plus runs against the Trojans.
Kaleb Binstock (JR/Grand Forks, ND)’s two-run, first inning home run staked UJ to an early lead against Viterbo, then a five-run second inning provided more than enough run support for starting pitcher Dakota Nelson (JR/Dallas, OR).
Nelson, making his sixth start of the season, turned in his best performance to date, holding the V-Hawks to one run on five hits over six innings. He struck out four and threw just 67 pitches.
Binstock was 2-for-3 with 2 RBI for UJ. Jaden Yackley (JR/Lynnwood, Wash.) drove in a pair with his second-inning single. Kory Wolden(SR/West Fargo, ND), Tyler Ludlow (SR/Port Orchard, WA), and Taichi Sasaki (SR/Sakai, Osaka, Japan) also had run-scoring hits.
Noah Bouley was 3-for-4 and scored twice to lead Viterbo. Nolan Glunz finished 2-for-3 and drove in a run. Joe Cliver took the loss on the mound, giving up seven runs on eight hits in three innings.
The Jimmies scored at least three runs in each of the first six innings in a 23-8 win over Dakota State.
Drake Pilat (JR/Winnipeg, MB, Canada), Taichi Sasaki, Jared Berard(FR/Tacoma, WA), and Kaleb Binstock all homered as part of a 21-hit attack. Pilat and Binstock each had three hits. Kory Wolden, Scooter Turin (SR/Sandy, OR), and Marshal Burgess (JR/Brandon, MB, Canada) all had two hits. Sasaki scored in each of his four plate appearances, walking twice and getting hit by a pitch in addition to his home run.
Cole Torgerson (SO/Billings, MT) (2-0) started and went the first four innings to get the win. He allowed four runs on five hits, striking out five.
Smith Kemper, Hayden Klibbe, and Dyshawn Proudlove all had two hits for Dakota State. Samuel Drummond was the losing pitcher, allowing eight runs on eight hits in two innings.
The win over Dakota State capped off a huge weekend for the Jimmie offense. In six games, UJ scored 102 runs on 105 hits, with 35 going for extra bases, including 18 home runs. Jamestown hit .488 as a team and were successful on 19 of 21 stolen base attempts. Opponents hit just .239 against Jimmie pitching and scored 24 runs on 39 hits in 42 innings.
Jamestown finishes the regular season with a record of 39-7 and earned the number three seed in the North Star Athletic Association postseason tournament with a 16-6 conference mark. The Jimmies host sixth-seed Viterbo (13-39) on Friday at 4:00 p.m. in the first round.