DECORAH, IOWA – Home is certainly where the heart is for the Luther College baseball team. After playing 15 games on the road, the Norse officially played their first games of the 2023 season on their home field. In fact, Luther could not have asked for a better homecoming, as the team swept Nebraska-Wesleyan University in its American Rivers Conference (A-R-C) doubleheader Friday afternoon. The Norse used a dramatic eighth inning comeback to upend the Prairie Wolves 3-2 in game one before dominant pitching and impressive hitting lead to a 6-3 victory in game two. With the swee, Luther is now 9-8 overall and the Norse open the A-R-C schedule with a 2-0 record.
GAME ONE: LUTHER (3) vs. NEB.-WESLEYAN (2) - 10 INNINGS
Luther found itself in a hole early, as the Prairie Wolves scored two runs on Ryan Manternach (Monticello, Iowa / Monticello) in the top of the first. It looked like the Norse were destined to respond with runs of their own in the bottom of the inning, courtesy of back-to-back bloopers by Charlie Rubendall (Minneapolis, Minn. / DeLaSalle) and Aidan Michna (Moline, Ill. / Moline). However, the duo was stranded at first and third after a controversial fair/foul call during Josh Matanich (Lake City, Minn. / Lincoln) at bat ended Luther's rally.
The Norse did not generate much in terms of offense in the second or third innings, but they put together their best scoring opportunity in the bottom of the third. Michna hit a leadoff single to open the inning before Matanich drew a walk, putting runners on first and second with zero outs. The duo would advance to second and third on swinging bunt from Will Heithoff (Winterset, Iowa / Winterset) but were stranded at their posts, as Nebraska-Wesleyan pitched its way out of the inning to preserve its 2-0 lead.
After threatening for three consecutive innings, Luther finally broke through for its first runs of the ball game in the bottom of the eighth. After reaching base on a throwing error by the shortstop, Sebben (Moline, Ill. / Moline) scored the first run of the game for the Norse on a wild pitch, cutting the lead to 2-1 with one out on the board. In the next at bat, Matanich tied things up at 2-2, delivering a clutch RBI single down the right field line.
Nolan Klocke (Hayfield, Minn. / Hayfield) pitched a perfect top of the ninth, striking out the side to set up the walkoff for Luther's offense. The Norse were unable to capitalize on Cullen Stamp's (Plymouth, Minn. / Wayzata) two-out single, sending Klocke back out to the mound for the tenth. Again, the first year shut down the top of the Prairie Wolves order, once again setting the stage for Luther's offense. This time around, the top of the order delivered. With two outs and no one on, Michna blasted a double to left center, prompting Nebraska-Wesleyan to intentionally walk Matanich. The move paid off for the Norse, as Gabe Atkins (Castle Pines, Colo. / Rock Canyon) delivered a walk off single to clinch a 3-2 victory for Luther.
GAME TWO: LUTHER (6) vs. NEB.-WESLEYAN (3)
Luther didn't wait eight innings to score its first runs of game two, as the Norse jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the third. A leadoff infield single from Peyton Lindmark (Bettendorf, Iowa / Bettendorf), followed by a double to the wall by Mark Prince (Encintas, Calif. / La Costa Canyon) resulted in runners on second and third with no outs. The duo would eventually score on a RBI single from Rubendall, giving Luther a 2-0 lead after three innings of play.
The Norse would add two more runs in the bottom of the fourth, as Atkins scored on a wild pitch and Lindmark blasted an RBI double to extend the lead to 4-0. Two innings later, it was 6-0 Luther, as the Norse tacked on two more runs on RBI singles from Prince and Sebben for the six run lead.
Things got a bit hairy for starting pitcher Harry Blum (Fridley, Minn. / Fridley) in the top of the seventh. After grooving through six innings of flawless work, the senior gave up a lead off single to open the inning before a fielding error by the right fielder resulted in runners on the corners with now outs. Two singles later, the Prairie Wolves cut the lead to 6-2 before a passed ball made it 6-3 with only one out on the board. Blum, though, was seemingly unphased, as he struck out Nebraska-Wesleyan's seven hitter for the second out of the game before a fly out to right secured the 6-3 win for Luther.
TOP NORSE
- Josh Matanich (Lake City, Minn. / Lincoln) went 2-3 at the plate for the Norse, as he hit in the game-tying run in the bottom of the eighth. Aidan Michna (Moline, Ill. / Moline) went 3-5 and scored two runs, including the game-winner, while Gabe Atkins (Castle Pines, Colo. / Rock Canyon) was 2-5 and hit the walkoff single in the bottom of the tenth.
- Nolan Klocke (Hayfield, Minn. / Hayfield) picked up his second win of the season, pitching a scoreless ninth and tenth inning to set up Atkins walk off. The first year faced six batters and struck out four, while Ryan Manternach (Monticello, Minn. / Monticello) struck out nine and surrendered two runs on five hits in six innings of work.
- Atkins stayed hot in game two, going 3-3 at the plate and scored two runs, while Peyton Lindmark (Bettendorf, Iowa / Bettendorf), Mark Prince (Encintas, Calif. / La Costa Canyon) and Cullen Stamp (Plymouth, Minn. / Wayzata) all tallied at least two hits in the win.
- Harry Blum (Fridley, Minn. / Fridley) improved to 3-2 this season thanks to his complete game performance. The senior took a no hitter into the fifth inning and finished the game with a season high 10 strikeouts in seven complete innings of work.
UP NEXT
Luther will conclude its series with Nebraska Wesleyan on Saturday, March 25, as the Norse host the Prairie Wolves in a single game. First pitch is currently scheduled for 1:00 p.m. in Decorah, Iowa. As always, follow the team on social media or check out luthernorse.com for the latest updates regarding weather.
